At First Sight
by beyondthetower
Summary: After moving to Waffle Island, Molly is convinced that her new life will be perfect and simple. However, after setting her eyes on Owen for the first time she knows things are going to be different than she expected. And after that first encounter, Owen is convinced she's different from any other girl. But making her fall in love proves to be more complicated than he expected.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! So this is my first fan fiction. I just started it for fun, but I'd love to know what you think. I feel as though the world needs more Owen fan fiction :) So bare with me on this first chapter. It's not great but it gets things rolling, and it will be switching occasionally to Owen's P.O.V and maybe someone else's ;) thank you so much for reading and let me know what you think! (P.S I don't own the icon image. I got it from a Photobucket site)**

Molly's P.O.V.

When I shut the door behind me I leaned up against it and let a sigh pass my lips. Mayor Hamilton sure could talk. It seemed that in the three days I had been there, he had taken up almost all of my time showing me around, introducing me to people and telling me every single thing I would need to do to get my farm up and running. I mean I understood it, I was new to this whole farming thing, but I wasn't an idiot. I could learn.

Why I agreed to take the job offer of running this old, abandoned farm, I couldn't tell you, although I did know part of the reason. I needed to get away from the city, or more importantly my parents. I was tired of living the life they wanted me to, the kind that involved grand parties and Champaign and limos. It just wasn't who I was, whoever that might be. At first, when I told my parents about moving to Waffle Island, they just shrugged it off as a phase and said they wouldn't fight it, but once they realized I was serious, they got a little more guarded, worrying that I would never come back.

Truth is, I didn't want to go back. I wanted to build a life here.

Begrudgingly, I pushed myself back onto my feet and stared at the suitcase sitting next to my bed. I hadn't even had time to unpack. And when the clock mounted on the wall in the kitchen struck nine, I knew that unpacking would just have to wait until the morning.

The morning. That meant waking up at an ungodly hour. That was one thing I wasn't prepared for when I took this job: early hours.

I fell into bed, without even bothering to change into my pajamas. I thought back to all of the faces I had met that day. Eyes closed, I tried to put together the faces and relationships.

First, there was Gill, the Mayor's son with no sense of humor who spent his life behind his maple desk. Then there was the Fishery, with Ozzie and his nephews, Toby and Paolo. There was that farm down the road with that grumpy couple, Ruby and Craig, and their shy daughter Anissa. Renee and her parents owned the animal farm on the hills behind the mountain. And then there was that Inn, where there were like, a million people to remember.

As I felt myself drifting I tried to go through the names quickly. There was Colleen and Jake, and their annoyingly perky daughter, Maya. Yolanda was the head cook at the small café they had on one side of the lobby, and there was that rude guy, Chase? I couldn't remember him exactly; I just remembered that he eyed me suspiciously before quickly turning back to the vegetables he was chopping behind the counter. Then that blond girl, Kathy I think her name was, interrupted my staring.

There were more people, ones whose faces seemed to just blur together as I felt my breathing slow down and drifted to sleep.

* * *

Sun peaked through the curtains and filled the room as the clock in the kitchen struck six. My eyes fluttered open, squinting slightly at the light blinding me from the window next to me. I groaned, rolling over in my bed and pulling the covers up over my head. Why did farmers need to get up so early? Was it, like, against the rules to water plants at night? But I wanted to succeed, so after a minute or two I managed to convince myself to get out of bed. I threw my legs over the side of the bed and stretched. Before I even had time to stand up there was a knock on my door. I stumbled over, catching myself on the kitchen table when I tripped, and turned the doorknob.

When I saw Mayor Hamilton behind the door I wanted to groan, but I composed myself. Realizing how embarrassing that would be if I had let it slip I blushed, and cleared my throat as the Mayor started to speak.

"Well good morning, Molly," he said cheerfully. "How are you doing today?"

"Um, good. I'm good," I mumbled, trying to force a smile. It was just too early, I barely knew where I was let alone _how_ I was.

"Great to hear, great to hear," he said. "So I was thinking last night about your farm, and I know Ruth and Craig gave you some seeds to start out with, but in regards to your current financial situation, I feel as though it would be best if you worked around the island a little to earn some extra money."

My eyes were sticking, and I struggled to keep them open. I tried desperately to keep up with what he was saying, but I had a hard time doing it.

"So I talked to some of the people around town to see if they needed any help. Dale, the carpenter down the road, said that he could use an extra pair of hands for a few days if you were interested. I told him you were."

Dale, that was the other man I had met the day before, and his son.

"He said you could stop by today when you're done with your farming here, say around noon?"

I nodded politely. "Thanks, Mayor," I said. "That was really sweet of you. I'll be sure to stop by." It totally wasn't what I planned on saying to him, but it just kind of slipped out. Must have been the morning confusion.

"Great! I'll go let him know. Have a great day, Molly."

"You too," I called after him. I shut the door behind me, wanting so desperately to run back to bed and never move again. But I didn't, I just walked to the kitchen and searched for something to eat. There were three eggs from Renee, some milk, and two oranges from Ruth. That was enough for one meal. I really needed to get some food.

After breakfast and a quick shower I made my way out to the field and started planting the few seeds that Ruth had given me the day before. The field was a mess, nothing but weeds that were almost as tall as I was, and dry soil. By the time noon came around only half of the soil had been weeded, and I did my best at planting and watering what I had. I looked at my watch; it was time for my new job. Great.

I threw off my gloves and started down the path next to my house, the one the Mayor had taken me down the day before. In the distance I could see the Carpenters, and as I passed the forest I hear someone call out to me.

"Molly! Hey, what's up?" I turned my head to see Dale's son barreling down the path the forest toward me.

"Uh, hey," I said stopping. "It's Luke right?"

He smiled as he caught up to me. "Right you are," he replied. He began walking in synch with me, his axe hung over his shoulders and his arms wrapped around the wooden handle. "So Hamilton just stopped by and told us you were gonna be working here for a few days." He was looking down at me, a smile spread across his face.

"Yeah, I need to earn some extra money," I explained. "I can't get a farm started without crops."

He laughed, "That's true. But hey it's gonna be fun having someone else to work with. Between you and me, I can get pretty sick of Bo and my dad." He winked at me as he held the door open. I walked through the doorway and Dale looked up at me. "Molly!" he called. "Welcome, welcome. Thank you so much for lending a hand around here. We have a huge remodeling job at the Town Hall and the boys need my help."

"We don't need your help, old man," Luke chimed, clapping me on the back as he passed me. "You just want to feel needed around here."

"Watch yourself, Luke," Dale grumbled. Then to me he said, "Anyway, it would be nice if we could have someone to work orders and stuff here. You know, so we don't have to close down the store all week."

I smiled politely. "No problem, sir," I replied. "It'll be good for me to earn some cash."

There was a crash as Luke dropped his axe on the floor next to the door and walked off into a back room. I jumped, and when he saw my eyes dart over to Luke Dale said, "Don't worry, Molly, it'll be a lot quieter around here once we leave." He smiled at me and I smiled back. "Now what do you say I show you the ropes? It's easy."


	2. Chapter 2

Okay so hopefully at least someone is reading this chapter. I promise it will get better. I literally did this really quickly jut because I felt like it would be something fun to do, so I don't take it too seriously. If you like it leave some reviews. Those would make me happy :)

* * *

Molly's P.O.V

The guys had gotten back at around six o'clock. I had nothing to report, except for a request by the Mayor to hurry up with the remodeling. Why he couldn't just walk over and tell them that himself I wasn't sure, but I didn't question it. I just delivered the message.

Luke walked outside with me, axe in hand. He started going on and on about how his dad never gave him a break, complaining that there was no need for him to get more lumber but his dad forced him to anyway.

"I mean, it just isn't fair," he spat. "Bo gets to sit on his ass and do nothing for the rest of his night, and I have to go work even harder. All by myself." He tilted his head back and looked up at the sky.

"Maybe it's just cause he trusts you more. With the work I mean," I offered.

Luke opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by a call from behind us.

"Yo! Luke!"

We both spun around, our eyes fixed on the man running toward us from the building on the other side of the carpenter's. He was tall, with shaggy auburn hair and strong arms. As he got closer Luke called back to him.

"Owen, what's up?"

Owen slowed his pace and stopped in front of us. "Nothing man, I was just wondering if you wanted to go get some food at the Inn. I'm starving." He glanced down at me, and he stepped back a little once he noticed I was an unfamiliar face. "Oh, hey. You're new."

Before I got a chance to speak I hear Luke say, "Yeah this is Molly. She's gonna run that old farm down the road."

Owen smiled down at me, offering me his hand to shake. I took it. "Nice to meet you, Molly," he said. "I'm Owen."

Of course, I had already guessed that, but a mixture between his smiling down at me and actually saying his name made my stomach feel strange. Once I realized I was staring I smiled back weakly.

"Nice to meet you too," I said. And just like that, the moment was over.

"Anyway, what do you say to dinner, Luke? Oh, and of course, you can come too, Molly." Owen smiled again, keeping his eyes on me for a second and looking right back to Luke.

"Naw man, I can't. Dad's got me working late again."

Owen's face fell. "Dale, always ruining our man dates," he sighed. "Aw well, maybe tomorrow right?"

"Right," Luke said, smiling widely.

"What about you, Molly? You hungry?" Owen was staring at me again, his gray eyes sparkling.

Again with the staring. I shook myself out of the hypnosis. "Oh, well I—sure. Sure I'll go," I stuttered.

"Sweet. Have fun guys." Luke turned on his heal and headed toward the forest, leaving Owen and I standing there alone.

"You ready to go?" he asked nonchalantly. He turned and looked over his shoulder at me as he walked toward the Maple Districts.

The silence, to me, was deafening. It didn't seem to bother Owen at all though. He kept his hands in his pockets, staring out at nothing in particular. Every once in a while I would glance over at him, but I never kept my eyes on him for too long. The only sound around us was the scuffing of our feet against the dirt road, and the faint sound of that Toby guy throwing out his fishing line.

In the distance, I could see the Sundae Inn coming into view. The lights lit up the porch, and Jake was outside sweeping the dirt off the sides. Owen still didn't speak, which was strange to me. Ever since I had gotten to town all anyone ever did was talk to me. Mayor Hamilton wouldn't leave me alone, Luke did nothing but talk when we walked together, Dale went on about how to work the register for, like, an hour, even Ruth lectured me about proper soil care for a lot longer than I imagined she would. And here was Owen, who didn't say a word to me until we walked into the Inn.

He held the door open for me, and I walked through. That annoying, Maya girl shot up from her seat when she saw us walk in.

"Hi, Owen! Hi, Molly!" she cried, waving at us from across the room.

"Hey, Maya," Owen said. "I hope you have some good food tonight because I am so hungry."

Maya met us at the table next to the bar. I sat down across from Owen and glanced over into the kitchen. That guy Chase was eyeing me again; just like he had done the night I had met him. He held a mixing bowl in his hands, and he was stirring something around with a wooden spoon with this nasty look on his face. I couldn't tell if it was directed toward me or if it was directed toward whatever he was stirring. When he saw me glance over he looked away quickly, turning his back to me.

"You know we _always_ have good food, Owen," Maya giggled. "Especially for you."

"You're too kind, Maya. I'll have a burger then, and a beer. What about you, Molly?"

My head snapped back to Owen. He and Maya were staring at me, waiting for me to reply. "Oh, um. Well what do you suggest?" I asked.

Maya smiled. "Well, Chase made this absolutely amazing chicken pot pie a little while ago. It was totally delicious."

"Yeah. Alright I'll have that," I replied. And just like that she was skipping off to the kitchen.

When I looked back up at Owen I was expecting him to be looking away again. In fact, was kind of hoping he would be looking away. There was something about him that made me uneasy. I was seriously dreading agreeing to come to dinner, no matter how hungry I was. When I turned to look at him though, he was still staring at me, his lips curving into the smallest smile.

"So, Molly," he finally said. "What made you decide to be a farmer?"

I straightened up a little bit, and reached out for the glass of water Maya ran over and placed on the table. As I reached for my glass Owen reached out for his beer, and for a split second my hand grazed against his. I recoiled my hand, leaving my water sitting in the middle of the table.

"Um, well, I don't really know," I started. "I saw an add for it when I was at work back home, and something just kind of drew me in."

He nodded, taking a sip of his beer and keeping his eyes focused on mine, like he was waiting for me to continue.

"So, uh, I just decided that I needed something different. And I moved here."

"Table two is up, Maya." I looked over at Chase again. He was placing our food down on the bar, his eyes focused on Maya who was talking to whoever was at the table in the back. For a second his eyes met mine again, and he turned again and disappeared behind the fridge.

Maya rushed over to the bar and grabbed our plates, sliding them down in front of us. "Enjoy," she said, smiling. Then she was gone again.

"Did you farm back at home or something?" Owen asked, pulling his plate closer to him.

"Actually no, I've never even been on a farm before." I blushed and stared down at my food. Like I needed more people to know how unqualified I was for the job.

Owen chuckled, and when I finally mustered up the courage to look up at him again he wasn't looking at me like I was ridiculous, more like I was…

"Man you sure are brave," he finally said. Right. That. "I mean, going into work that you have no idea about is one thing, but something like farming? Man that takes a lot of strength."

I managed a smile, "Well thanks for believing in me," I joked.

Owen laughed again. "I'm just saying. It's a lot of work." He ate a few more french-fries before he spoke again. "But hey, if you ever need any help I would be happy to help out." He bowed his head and pushed his fries around. "I mean, I don't really know anything about farming, but two people that no nothing about farming are better than one, right?"

"I think I'll be okay," I said, taking a moment to blow on my food before eating it. "But if I do need anything, I'll let you know."

Owen just smiled at me and went quiet again, focusing more on his food than anything else. He was strange, to say it lightly.

One meal, two beers, and slice of apple pie later, Owen dropped his fork onto his plate and stretched back in his chair. The conversation had stayed light the rest of dinner. Mostly just talk about what it was like around town, and what Owen had to do at his job as a blacksmith. He talked about mining and the different kinds of gems he's found there, even how deep he's mined before. Surprisingly time flew by. Talking to Owen came so easily to me.

Now, we were walking down the path to my house in the Caramel River District. As much as I had protested, Owen had insisted on walking me home. He claimed that he was raised to be a gentleman, and if he let me go off on my own he would earn a bad reputation around town.

"So you're gonna be working at the Blacksmith's huh?" We walked by a fork in the road where the river ran next to us. Owen stared up at the sky as he talked, like his thoughts were straying away from the conversation.

"For a few days, yeah," I answered. "At least while I work up enough money to buy some food and some more seeds, maybe even a cow." He glanced at me then, just as we stepped up to my front door.

"Well, again, if you need any—"

"I know, I know," I cut him off. "If I need any help I'll let you know." I fumbled around in my pocket for my house key, pulled it out and stuck it into the lock. I jiggled it until it clicked open. "I promise."

Owen stepped back and said, "Good. I'll see you later, Molly."

I stepped inside, closing the door behind me and walking over to the front window. As he walked down the road I watched him until he disappeared behind the trees to the mining district.


	3. Chapter 3

Owen's P.O.V.

I got back from the mines that night and collapsed on the couch in the back room, letting my hammer drop down onto the ground next to me. I sighed, leaning my head back against the wall and letting my eyes fall closed. Sometimes, I really hated mining. I mean, I loved it, but there were days that I could spend hours down there and not find a single useful ore, never mind a gem. Not only did I waste my time mining for nothing but junk, but when I got home it put my great uncle Ramsey in the worst of moods. Like I could control the lack of good ores.

When he was in bad moods (which was basically all of the time) it was impossible to be around him, which meant today I most certainly did not want to join him for dinner. Finally, I got the energy to get up and ask Luke if he wanted to go to dinner. But just as I was about to step outside I looked down at my clothes. I was a mess. Normally, I didn't really care about the dirt. But today was an especially bad day, and I wasn't just dirty, I was caked with mud. I thought for a second about showering. Luke wouldn't really care if I was dirty, and no one at the Inn would care, knowing my profession. But for some reason, by some crazy hand of fate, I decided to shower and change.

Outside the sun had set behind the town below me, and the stars were just starting to come out. I heard Luke's voice behind me, and when I turned over to the Carpenter's building I could see him walking with someone, his head looking toward the sky.

"Yo! Luke!" I called out, waving my hand as he turned around.

"Owen, what's up?" he called back.

I ran up to them, stopping in front of them and catching my breath. "Nothing man, I was just wondering if you wanted to go get some food at the Inn. I'm starving," I replied.

Then I saw her.

It hadn't occurred to me that I wouldn't know who Luke was walking with, so that might back been part of the reason I stepped back when I glanced down at her. But really, I was so taken aback by how absolutely beautiful she was, that it physically made me step backward. It was like this wind, knocking all of the air out of my lungs so I had to pull away to break free from it and regain my strength. Everything about her was so perfect, so breath-taking. Her short, chestnut hair fell just above her shoulders, and a few pieces fell into her face as she turned her head to look at me. My first reaction was to reach down and tuck them behind her ear, but I couldn't even move.

There were so many things I wanted to say to her in that moment. I wanted to tell her that she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. I wanted to tell her that she had literally stolen the breath from my lungs. I wanted to tell her that looking at her made my heart melt, but instead all that came out was, "Oh, hey. You're new."

So lame.

I heard Luke speak, forcing me to look away from her. "Yeah this is Molly," he said. "She's gonna run that old farm down the road."

I glanced at her again, staring into her hazel eyes as I stuck out my hand for her. I couldn't help but smile when I looked at her, no matter how goofy I knew I looked. "Nice to meet you, Molly," I said. "I'm Owen."

Molly shook my hand, and it was like a surge of electricity shot through me.

"Nice to meet you too," she said. God, even her voice was beautiful.

I tried not to keep staring at her. I was afraid it would make her feel uncomfortable, or catch onto the fact that she dumbfounded me, so I quickly looked back at Luke. "Anyway, what do you say to dinner, Luke? Oh, and of course, you can come too, Molly." I glanced at her again, and then forced myself to look away.

"Naw man, I can't. Dad's got me working late again," Luke replied.

"Dale, always ruining our man dates," I sighed. "Aw well, maybe tomorrow right?"

"Right," Luke answered.

For a second, I was worried that if Luke didn't go, Molly wouldn't go either. And I needed to spend time with her, or I might die. Prepared for the worst, I asked, "What about you, Molly? You hungry?"

She seemed to take a long time to answer, too long if you asked me. "Oh, well I—sure. Sure I'll go," she stuttered.

"Sweet. Have fun guys." Luke turned on his heal and headed toward the forest.

"You ready to go?" I asked. I turned and looked over my shoulder at her as I walked toward the Maple District.

Walking with her was so peaceful. With everyone else in Waffle Town, conversation was a necessity. With Molly though, she didn't need to fill in on the silences with pointless conversation. I wanted to take everything in: the way her feet sounded when the scraped against the dirt, the way her hair smelled like cherry blossoms, the way she would stare intently ahead like she had such purpose. But sadly, the time came too soon where the Inn came into view and we walked up the porch. And because I am a gentleman, I held the door open for her and let her walk in front of me.

Maya called out to the two of us, and I said, "Hey, Maya. I hope you have some good food tonight because I am _so_ hungry." We sat down at the table next to the bar.

"You know we _always_ have good food, Owen," Maya giggled. "Especially for you."

"You're too kind, Maya. I'll have a burger then, and a beer. What about you, Molly?"

When I looked at Molly she had been staring off into space again, and she turned back to me so quickly I thought her head would fall off.. "Oh, um. Well what do you suggest?" she asked.

Maya smiled. "Well, Chase made this absolutely amazing chicken pot pie a little while ago. It was totally delicious."

"Yeah. Alright I'll have that," she replied.

I couldn't stop staring at Molly. When she looked up at me, I just smiled, and did nothing but look into her hazel eyes. Eventually though, I could speak.

"So, Molly," I finally said. "What made you decide to be a farmer?"

She reached out to grab the water Maya had placed down on the table, and as she reached her hand touched mine and my stomach flipped.

"Um, well, I don't really know," she started. "I saw an add for it when I was at work back home, and something just kind of drew me in."

I took a sip of my beer and just stared again, still unable to look away.

"So, uh, I just decided that I needed something different. And I moved here."

"Table two is up, Maya," Chase said from behind the counter.

Maya rushed over to the bar and grabbed our plates, sliding them down in front of us. "Enjoy," she said.

"Did you farm back at home or something?" I asked as I reached out for my burger.

"Actually no, I've never even been on a farm before." Molly looked down at her food, and I could see a little bit of pink crawling up her neck. Even when she blushed it was pretty.

I laughed at myself. Here I was sitting at a dinner table alone with the most amazing woman in the world, and I was getting lightheaded over everything she did.

"Man you sure are brave," I said. "I mean, going into work that you have no idea about is one thing, but something like farming? Man that takes a lot of strength."

Molly smiled "Well thanks for believing in me," she said sarcastically.

I could have blushed myself. I didn't want her to think I was an ass. "I'm just saying. It's a lot of work. But hey, if you ever need any help I would be happy to help out." There was a possibility I jumped too quickly into saying that. I knew absolutely nothing about it. "I mean, I don't really know anything about farming, but two people that no nothing about farming are better than one, right?" I said.

"I think I'll be okay," she said. And that was it. I blew my chances with her. "But if I do need anything, I'll let you know."

So there was hope yet. I just smiled to myself, letting the silence fall over me again.

By the end of the night I had convinced her to let me walk her home. As we walked down along Caramel River I tried to slow my pace in an attempt to spend as much time as I could with her.

"So you're gonna be working at the Dale's huh?" I looked up at the sky and thought about how much I wished she could have worked for my great uncle instead of Dale. That way I could see her everyday.

"For a few days, yeah," she answered. "At least while I work up enough money to buy some food and some more seeds, maybe even a cow." We walked up to her front door and turned to face each other. The night had finally come to an end.

"Well, again, if you need any—"

"I know, I know," she said suddenly. "If I need any help I'll let you know." She dug around in her pocket for her keys and unlocked her door. "I promise."

I hoped that she would keep that promise. "Good," I said. "I'll see you later, Molly."

There were so many girls on the island that I had known for a lot longer than Molly. Kathy and I had grown up together, and she was a very pretty girl. Maya was undoubtedly gorgeous, once you got past her over-peppiness. So as I walked home I wondered why it had been Molly that made me feel this weird feeling in my stomach that made me want to throw up and laugh all at the same time. I didn't know if I was in love with Molly, or if I even liked her, so the only thing I could do was sigh, and wish that whatever was happening to me got easier.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys! So I hope you liked the Owen chapter. I think writing in his P.O.V is my favorite :) Anyway. Review and Favorite if you want to and all that fun stuff. Enjoy!**

Molly's P.O.V.

At work the next day I was actually more bored than I had been before, which I didn't even think was possible. Not even Mayor Hamilton had called in for anything. For two hours I had been sitting there with nothing but the sound of my fingers tapping against the wood countertop and the refrigerator in the next room humming constantly. It wasn't until the clock struck two that I realized exactly how hungry I was. I hadn't eaten since six that morning.

And just like an answer to my prayers the front door open, causing the bell above the door to ring. I straightened up, watching as Chase walked into the building and looked around.

"Can I help you?" I asked.

He jumped a little, looking over at me from the front door. A whickered by a checkered red towel danged from his forearm as he stared at me from across the room. At first he hesitated, but after a second he started over toward the counter. "Is Dale around?" he asked shortly.

"No he's at the Town Hall today working on renovations," I replied. "He won't be back until later." Chase placed the basket in front of me and raised an eyebrow.

"Really? Yolanda told me I had to make a lunch delivery today. Are you…working here or something?" His grip on the basket didn't loosen.

"Uh, yeah, for a few days anyway."

I had never taken a good look at Chase since I had been there. As he was standing there in front of me I wondered why I hadn't. He was extremely attractive. His face was long and skinny, and his high cheekbones fell just below his brilliant purple eyes. He was a little taller than me, enough so he was looking down at me as we spoke, and even though he was a chef he had almost no fat on his body.

"So I guess this lunch is supposed to be just for you then?" he asked. He let go of the basket and headed back toward the door. His abruptness almost startled me. As he waked away I felt as though the wind was knocked out of me, and I couldn't respond.

"Wait," I called out finally.

Chase turned around, looking at me as if I totally ruined his day by speaking again and holding him back.

"What do I owe you?" I asked quietly.

He shrugged, and turned back around. "I was told it was already paid for, so nothing," he replied. And then he was gone. He pushed through the door and disappeared behind it.

That first interaction I had ever had with Chase was so quick that I barely even realized it was happening. Those few times I had seen him at the Sundae Inn there was something about the look he gave me, the one dripping with loathing and judgment, that drew me in. Back at home I had met boys like him, overly sarcastic, sharp-tongued, and brooding. They were all the same: they acted as if they didn't give a shit about anything but deep down there was some insecurity or secret past that caused them to be guarded and unpleasant. The walls those guys put up were not easily broken down, but when they did fall you found a totally different person. I had been always been drawn into those types of people, maybe that's what cased me to stare at Chase the way I did.

For the rest of my shift the only person I could think about was Chase. My mind reeled as to what his problem was. Sure, he could probably be a really great guy once I got to know him, but I wasn't sure I wanted to. Guys like Chase were, to put it simply, lonely. And I had already had my fair share of rude boyfriends. There was something about him though, that kept him stuck in my head.

Luke had returned first, relieving me of my duty. When he walked in he threw his axe by the door and kicked off his shoes, stretching his arms back and yawning loudly. "Man, that renovation has got to be the biggest job we've done in this town," he groaned. Hamilton can be even more of a perfectionist than his loser son." He collapsed on a couch in the corner, throwing his head back against the wall.

"That Gill kid, right?" I asked turning the key to the register and throwing the key into the draw next to me. "He seemed nice enough to me." I walked over to where Luke was sitting and sat down on the arm of the chair across from him.

Luke's head snapped up. "Yeah, that's because his life goal isn't to ruin your life."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Ruin your life? I feel like your exaggerating."

"Maybe," he replied. "But the guy hates me and _everything_ I do is wrong to him. So when he showed up tonight dad let me leave."

"It's that bad?" I asked.

Luke shrugged. "Eh, we have the occasional spat." He stood up and walked over to the kitchen, opening the refrigerator door and leaving into it, staring at whatever was inside. "Anyway, dad put me in charge of cooking duty because dumb ol' Chase didn't have time to make us dinner tonight. By the way did you get your lunch?" He slammed the door shut and moved on to the cabinets.

"Yeah I did, thanks so much it was great."

"Dad figured we should feed you. You know, that's what neighbors do. So this is a total joke, I don't think I have ever even turned this stove on before." He grabbed the handle of the oven and opened it, inspecting it.

"That's an oven, Luke," I giggled.

He just looked up at me, no indication of embarrassment at all. "See," he cried. "It's hopeless I don't even know what this damn thing is called!"

I stood up then, walking over to where he stood and opening the refrigerator. "How about this, since I have no food or money and I desperately need to eat, I'll cook you guys something if I can stay for dinner."

Luke's face lit up. "Deal," he said enthusiastically. "But only if you let me help, I mean, a little."

I grabbed an old apron that was hanging on a hook near the window. "Alright," I said. "Let's get started."

After dinner was over Luke insisted on walking me home. It was almost nine o'clock, and if I wanted to get all of my chores done in time for work the next morning, I would have to get to bed. We were walking past the forest, Luke's hands were stuffed in his pockets and he was smiling to himself.

"Man that pasta was amazing, I swear you could give Chase a run for his money," Luke said.

"I seriously doubt that," I replied. "I had some of his tomato soup today. It was amazing. And last night I had chicken pot pie at dinner and it was probably some of the best pot pie I've ever had."

Luke looked down at me then. "Oh right, you and Owen went out to dinner. How was that?"

"Good. Kind of got me to talk to everyone, I'm not so good with getting to know new people." I could see my house peaking out in the distance, the light from my kitchen still on from this morning.

"Yeah well if you're trying to get to know people, Owen makes that easy," Luke replied. "He's really laid back, like me. That's why we get along so well. Unlike all of the snooty people in this town." He scoffed as we walked up to my door.

"Oh come on, you're being harsh," I smiled.

"Maybe, but Owen really is an awesome guy." Before stepping off of my front porch Luke winked at me, turning on his heel to head back to his house. For a minute I just stared at him, watching him disappear behind the trees like I had done with Owen the night before, wondering what on earth he meant by that. After shrugging it off I stepped into my house and got ready for bed.


	5. Chapter 5

**These next two are my favorites so far :) I hope you guys are liking it. Really let me know! It would be great to have at least one review haha.**

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Molly's P.O.V

Early the next morning I got a phone call from Luke asking to pick up their breakfast at the Inn. After a good deal of coaxing and a bonus I slipped into my jeans, T-shirt and work boots, through my rucksack over my shoulder, and headed into town. The sun had just risen and the glare made me squint as soon as I stepped outside. I stretched, starting toward the Inn, and behind me I could hear my cow's bell jingle back and forth as she mooed.

"I'll be back soon, Martha, I promise," I called. She didn't really care though; she was just a cow after all. After walking into the Inn, Chase looked up from behind the counter. At first he eyed me the way he had done every time I had seen him, then turned around and mumbled an unenthusiastic "hi".

I walked up to the counter and drummed my fingers along the wood. "I came to get the breakfast order for Dale, Luke and Bo," I said, watching Chase pace back and forth, picking up random things and putting them away. My bag hung heavily on my shoulder, and I as waited for his reply I placed it up on the counter, rubbing my shoulder with my right hand. I glanced around the room, noticing it was abnormally quiet that morning. "Where is everyone?" I asked.

Chase finally grabbed a basket of bagels, fruit and pastries and placed it in front of me. "Not here," he replied simply. I narrowed my eyes, my face getting hot with irritation.

"Wow, no way," I shot back. "I didn't notice."

He shrugged and turned around. "Have a good day."

I thought about staying just to piss him off, or saying something that was just as rude, but instead I just grabbed the basket and huffed away, thankful that I wouldn't have to see him again that day. As much as I tried not to, as I pushed the door open and stomped out I mumbled, "You too, ass hole."

The walk to the Carpenters was long and cold. Autumn was starting to rear its head, and the chill in the air was especially prevalent in the morning. Suddenly, I was regretting not wearing a scarf and sweater that morning. I took in a deep breath and stuffed my hands deeper into my pockets and scrunched up my shoulders in an attempt to keep away most of the cold.

Eventually, I made it to the path leading to the mines, the Carpenters' breakfast basket dangling from my wrist and banging up against my thigh. As I passed the entrance to the mine, Owen walked out the door of the Blacksmith's, hammer in hand. When he saw me he smiled and waved, meeting me at the middle of the gap between us.

"Morning, Miss Molly," he chimed.

"Good morning," I replied. I shifted the basket from my wrist to the crease in my elbow. "You off to work?" I glanced at my watch. It was only six o'clock. Normally I would just be walking up.

"Yup, you're up early. Luke got you running errands already?" He gestured toward the basket and laughed, and his gray eyes lit up as he did.

While I had noticed how tall Owen was the first time, I never really realized exactly how tall he was. He must have stood at least a half a foot above me, tall enough so I had to crane my neck upward to look him directly.

"Yeah, they needed breakfast, and he bribed me with a bonus so I agreed." A wind blew by, shaking the trees and branches around us, and sending an eerie whistle through the mines. We both looked over, and I felt the chill force the hair on my arms to rise. When I turned a way I noticed Owen was staring at my arms.

"Are you cold?" he asked.

I glanced down at my arms and shrugged. "I forgot a coat this morning. I didn't realize it would be like this."

"You want my jacket?" he asked quickly. Before I could answer Owen lowered his hammer to the ground and started slipping off his jacket. Underneath he was only wearing a black T-shirt.

"No, Owen it's okay. I can pick up my jacket as soon as I drop off their breakfast." I smiled sweetly at him, but he held up his hand in protest.

"I insist," Owen said, placing the large, brown jacket over my shoulders. "I don't want you getting sick, and I don't need it much anyway." He picked his hammer up off of the ground and flung it over his shoulder, and when I opened my mouth to speak he jut stepped away and smiled. "No take-backs," he said. "I'll see you later, okay?" My mouth snapped shut and I just nodded, watching as Owen turned and headed for the Mine.

When I walked into the Carpenter's Dale was behind the counter scribbling on a notepad and Luke and Bo were running round in the next room. I stood there for a second, waiting for Dale to look up and acknowledge me, but he never did. So instead I walked into the next room and stepped back quickly, avoiding Luke as he ran by me.

Luke ruffled my hair and grabbed a bagel out of my basket. "Morning, Molly. Good to see you. Is that ours? Thanks, I'll see you later." All of his words seemed to string together onto one long, fast paced sentence, and as quick as he snuck up on me he was out the door, slamming it behind him.

"Sorry about that, we ran out of lumber earlier than we were expecting, so we've been working in overdrive this morning," Bo said. He was packing up the toolboxes over at the kitchen table.

"That would explain the weirdness," I said simply, walking over and placing the basket down next to him. "And why I had to play delivery girl."

Bo shot me a sympathetic smile and thanked me again before turning back to his work. I took that as my cue to leave.

"Alright, I'll see you in a few hours."

On the walk home, I wrapped Owen's jacket tightly around me. The wind was picking up, causing a chill to rush down my spine again. When I finally reached Martha in the field, I had to push through the forces of the wind just to make it to her. After spending some time grooming her and milking her, I finally finished watering my crops and headed off to work.

When I walked in the guys had already left. I hung my scarf and Owen's coat on the coat rack next to the door and walked over to the counter. Dale had left me a note detailing the things that needed to be done: filing, cleaning, piling up any extra lumber in the back room, fun stuff like that.

Two o'clock had finally rolled around, and I had done all of the filing and most of the cleaning. I was in the back room stacking some of the lumber when I heard the bell in the front ring. I stood up, dusting off the splinters on my jeans, and walked out to the front.

As much as I hated him, I was hoping to see Chase standing there with some food, but instead, Owen was standing at the counter, resting up against his elbows. "Hey," I said, walking over to him.

He turned his head and smiled at me, standing up a little straighter. "Afternoon, Molly," he said cheerfully.

I leaned up against the counter across from him and let out a deep breath. It was nice to take a little break. "What can I do for you?"

Owen ran his hands through his hair, leaning back in on his elbows and coming a little too close to my face. "Dale called to have me check up on you," he said. "Apparently there's a really bad storm coming in and he's thinking about having you close up early."

"Why couldn't he just call me and tell me himself?" I stood up straight and crossed my arms across my chest.

Owen smirked. "He just wanted me to help with some of the lumber. Two pairs of hands are better than one right?" He pushed himself off of the counter and strode into the back room. I followed closely behind, watching as he lifted a bunch of the logs and dropped them onto my neatly piled wood.

Never had I met somebody as willing to help as Owen. Normally, when people ask you for help, it seems like such a burden. Whether you decide to help them or not depends on how much you like them, or how long you've known them. With Owen though, it seemed as natural as breathing. He threw the log after log onto that pile, and not only did it seem like he didn't mind, it actually seemed like he wanted to. I wasn't used to people like him. And I kind of liked it.

When I realized I was staring I blushed and turned away for a second. "Well if we have to close early then I'll finish cleaning," I said from the doorway.

Owen turned around and smiled that dazzling smile at me, as if to say, "Okay", and I turned back to the front room to clean off the sawdust from the sawing table.


	6. Chapter 6

**Here is chapter Six! I hope you guys are enjoying it :) and thank you so much to my first follower and reviewer! I appreciate you two. So much. And I love you. That is all.**

**P.S. I just want to make you guys aware that I do know Molly is not in TOT, which is where this story is based (cause I like it better) but I like the name Molly more. So that's why I chose her. **

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Owen's P.O.V

It had been two days since I had seen Molly for the first time. After dinner that night, I was bombarded by questions from Luke on the walk home. In a lame attempt to scare me he had jumped out of the forest as I walked by, and when I didn't react he asked me how dinner went and what we talked about and if she looked pretty. Apparently I wasn't the only one who had been captivated by the raving beauty that was Molly.

"Man, you sure are lucky," Luke had said to me that night, as if he could already notice the hold she had on me. "She seems like a really great girl." And he was right. She was.

Now, it was her last day working at the Carpenter's, and I still hadn't seen her around. Between mining all-day and sleeping all night, I didn't have much time to do anything else. Sometimes I thought about sneaking out to stop by her farm after work, but once night fell on workdays Ramsey rarely let me leave, claiming that there was something I needed to do to help him. Yeah right. There never was. So instead I would just lie awake at night and go over our first encounter again and again until sleep finally overtook me.

That morning though, I was lucky enough to be graced by her presence.

I stepped out into the cold Autumn morning and headed for the mine. When I turned from the door I saw her. She was walking toward me with a basket from the Inn dangling from her wrist. I waved my hand at her, and much like every time I looked at Molly, a goofy grin plastered itself onto my face that was only intensified when she waved back.

"Morning, Miss Molly," I called out to her as we met a few steps away from my door.

"Good morning," she replied. "You off to work?"

"Yup." I thought about how I would find a pretty gem that day and make her a necklace. I think she would like that. "You're up early. Luke got you running errands already?" I laughed at the thought about the boys at the Carpenter's and how they could never seem to take care of themselves, and now they had Molly running around to get their food.

"Yeah, they needed breakfast, and he bribed me with a bonus so I agreed." There was this big wind that made the Mine whistle, and when I looked down at Molly I noticed her bare skin covered in goose bumps. She turned back from the Mine and looked back up at me.

"Are you cold?" I asked.

She shrugged. "I forgot a coat this morning. I didn't realize it would be like this."

"You want my jacket?" I asked before I could even think. I slipped my jacket off of my arms.

"No, Owen it's okay. I can pick up my jacket as soon as I drop off their breakfast." She smiled sweetly at me and my heart melted a little bit, but I held my hand up.

"I insist," I said, placing my jacket over her shoulders. "I don't want you getting sick, and I don't need it much anyway." I picked my hammer up off of the ground and flung it over my shoulder. She looked as if she was going to protest again, so I said, "No take-backs. I'll see you later, okay?" And before she could respond I turned and headed to work.

I had made it down to the middle of the Mine by one o'clock, and my rucksack was almost completely filled with copper and silver ore. I hadn't even realized that I had so many materials for Ramsey, and I knew that after the luck I'd been having recently he would be stoked. Once I glanced at my watch and realized what time it was I stood up straight, wiping the beads of sweat from my forehead. I peered inside the bag of ores and made a headcount. I had at least two dozen, plenty of ores to make the new tools Dale had been asking for. My stomach grumbled and I clutched it with my free hand. It was getting close to lunchtime.

After throwing my rucksack over my bare shoulder I headed toward the stairs. As I started climbing something in the corner caught my eye. A tall, red crystal stood in the shaded area of the mine; it was the only one around. I was tired, and my stomach was completely empty, but for some reason I still stepped off of the stairs and walked over to it, swinging my hammer above my head and letting it crash down against the crystal.

When the dust finally cleared from the air I looked down at the floor. A round, red wonderful sat at my feet, sparking in the dim light of the cave. I picked it up, dusting it off and smiling to myself. Maybe I was crazy, and maybe I should have just thrown it right on top of the other stuff for Ramsey, but instead I stuffed it in my pocket. I had wanted to find something for Molly, and I did. So I took that as a sign.

"Oh, Ramsey!" I sang out as I stepped into the shop. "I've got you some loot."

Ramsey stood behind the counter staring at me as I walked up with my bag of ores for him. "You better have, we've had almost nothing lately."

I shot him a look.

"Well I did, I'd say close to a dozen silver ore and a dozen copper," I replied, opening the bag and showing him the finds.

"Good work Owen," he said gruffly. "As payment for actually being useful for once, you can have the rest of day off. It looks like rain anyway, so there wont be any mining left today."

I grabbed the bag and walked it over to Mira.

"Lunch is on the table, by the way." Ramsey turned around and went back to working the counter.

"Hey Mira, would you be a dear and refine these for me?" I dropped the bag on the counter and pushed it toward her.

"Of course, Owen" she replied with a meek smile.

I leaned in closer and whispered, "I found a wonderful. Would you mind making a necklace for me?" I glanced behind me to make sure Ramsey was still turned around and slipped the red wonderful out of my pocket and onto the counter.

Mira stared at me and smirked. "Won't that mean you have to use some of your uncle's silver?"

"What he doesn't know won't hurt him." I winked and slipped a few gold pieces onto the counter. And after the slightest moment of hesitation she took it, picking up the bag and bringing it over to the counter behind her.

In the kitchen, Chloe was sitting at the table eating her sandwich and flipping through a book. I snatched a sandwich off of the plate in the middle of the table and collapsed in the chair across form her. "Afternoon baby cousin," I said, taking a bite out of my sandwich.

"Afternoon," she replied, her eyes still glued to her book.

The phone behind her started to ring, and after four rings I realized she wasn't going to answer it. I stood up, sighing dramatically and walking over to the phone table. I moved the receiver to my ear. "Hello?" I asked.

"Owen?" It was Dale. The phone line was filled with sporadic static.

"Yeah, hey, what's up, Dale?" I shoved the rest of the sandwich in my mouth.

"We're at the Town Hall still, but the Mayor says that there's a really bad storm coming. Could you maybe go check up on Molly and help her with all that heavy wood? I think I'm gonna have her close early." I could barely make out what Dale was saying.

"Yeah, sure," I replied. I couldn't help that stupid goofy smile. Even just the thought of seeing her turned me into an idiot. I looked down at Chloe and turned away, hoping that she wouldn't see me.

"Thanks so much, O, you're the best."

The line clicked and I placed the phone back on the table. I couldn't run out the door fast enough. "I'll be back later, Dale wants me to help out Molly," I called behind me. I think Ramsey might have answered me, but I wasn't really sure.

When I got into the Carpenter's no one was around. The bell above the door _dinged_ and I walked over and leaned up against the counter. In the back, I could hear someone walking out to the front.

"Hey."

I know it sounds dramatic, but her voice was seriously like a chorus of angles. "Afternoon, Molly," I replied with that dumb grin.

She leaned up against the counter across from me and let out a deep breath. "What can I do for you?"

I rested my weight on my elbows again and found myself a lot closer to Molly than I had anticipated. I could smell that cherry blossom scent again, mixed with what smelled to me like hay and sawdust. I tried not to make it obvious that she was intoxicating me again "Dale called to have me check up on you," I finally said. "Apparently there's a really bad storm coming in and he's thinking about having you close up early."

"Why couldn't he just call me and tell me himself?" She stood up and crossed her arms over her chest, and I made sure not to stare like I wanted to.

"He just wanted me to help with some of the lumber. Two pairs of hands are better than one right?" I pushed myself off of the counter and headed for the back room. There, I found a pile of logs in the corner and started piling them up onto the neat stack. I could hear her footsteps behind me, treading softly on the wood floor. I could feel her behind me, watching me carefully, and if I didn't have a reputation to keep up I might have even blushed.

"Well if we have to close early then I'll finish cleaning," Molly said.

I turned around and stared at her. She was leaning up against the doorframe and smirking at me. Those hazel eyes of hers were sparkling and her hair was blowing from the breeze that was slipping in through the cracked window. I tried to speak, so I could answer her with actual words, but I just couldn't do it. So instead I just smiled, and watched as she turned to walk back into the front room.

After everything was cleaned and put away I grabbed the spare key Dale hid under the front mat to lock up. Outside, the storm was clearly almost upon us. The sky was dark gray, and it was only three o'clock. The rain had started to pour down, and wind was even worse than it was before. The door shut behind me, and next to me I could see my coat and a rose-colored scarf hanging off of the coat rack. It made me smile.

"Man that rain is coming down fast," I said as I walked over to the counter where Molly was locking up the register. "I hope your cow isn't outside."

"No I moved her into the barn right before I came to work, but I guess I didn't have to water my crops today huh?" Molly started turning off the lights before walking over and wrapping her scarf around her neck. "Do you want your coat back now? I'm just going right home." She grabbed my jacket off of the hanger and handed it to be.

"Not in this weather," I laughed. "You'll get soaked on the walk there." I opened the door for her and we stood out on the landing, covered by only the smallest but of roof. "Can I walk you?"

Molly smiled up at me, wrapping my jacket, which was entirely too big for her, around her tightly. "Not in this weather," she mimicked. "But thanks." She turned and started jogging toward her house, and I stared after her.

Little did she know, I would have walked her home in a tornado if I could. I wished then that she would think of me the way I thought of her: constantly and steadfast. "Be safe, Molly," I muttered to myself as I watched her shadow disappear behind the fast pouring rain. And after a second of staring into the space she had once been, I turned and ran back home.


	7. Chapter 7

**I hope you guys are enjoying the story so far. Next chapter we will be seeing the story through the point of view from a new character...hmmmm I wonder who that is. (As if it's hard to figure out). So anyway, I hope you like this latest chapter! Things are about to get a little more interesting...and semi-dramatic. Review please! :)**

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Molly's P.O.V

By the time I made it to my house my clothes were soaked through. On the way over to my dresser I slipped, my left leg shifting forward under me. I caught myself on the chair to my left and stood up straight, shedding Owen's now heavier jacket and dropping it on the floor. I peeled off my jeans, and left the pile of wet clothes on the floor. Once I got into my pajamas I fell onto my bed.

It was only the afternoon and I had nothing to do that day. I was stuck in my house for at least six hours with nothing to do and no one to talk to. After seriously regretting not letting Owen walk me home out of sheer loneliness, I thought about the options I had. I could sit here and die of boredom, I could sleep, or I could read. Then I jerked up. There was one thing I could do, read, and the only book I had to read was in my rucksack, that was still on the counter of the Inn.

The clock on the wall read just after three, and I sat there forever and thought about if I should go back and get it or if I should do the smart thing and stay home. Bored was better than endangered, and I knew that, but for some strange reason my feet had other plans. I struggled back into my already wet clothes, threw Owen's jacket over my shoulder, and trudged out into the rain.

To say the wind had picked up would be an understatement. Debris was flying through the air, thumping up against my clothes and whipping by me. Each step felt as though I had sandbags attached to my feet, and as I pushed forward I realized exactly how stupid I was being. I mean really? Risking my dying in a goddamn storm to read a book? What was wrong with me? But by the time I came to this epiphany I was already at the center of town, and in the distance I could see the Inn with light pouring out from the windows. I smiled slightly, grateful that I would soon be out of that storm, and right as I went to move my left foot forward I started to fall.

My foot didn't budge, and as I fell to the ground I screamed, landing onto my left side with a thud. When I opened my eyes I looked over at my foot that had sunken into the earth. "Shit," I mumbled. The mud was strong, and no matter how hard I tried I couldn't pull free. The rain felt like ice as it pounded against my face, and when the first clap of thunder rumbled through the town I started to panic, pulling at my leg again and again until I fell back onto my elbows.

"Help!" I screamed. But nobody heard me. The rain fell so hard and the wind was so strong that it would be a miracle if someone heard me. _So this is how it ends_, I thought to myself. _I am going to die because of a book._ And after screaming for the millionth time I gave up, pulling my free leg up to my chest and holding it close to me. Okay, so I knew I wasn't going to die. But I was worried about my ankle, and I had no idea how long that storm was going to last, or if it would get even worse. It could be ages until somebody found me. And it was. It must have been an hour before he found me.

"What are you doing?"

His voice was soft, and if I hadn't been straining to hear it, it would have been swept away with the wind, but I did hear it, and it was probably the most amazing sound I had ever heard. I whipped my head around, my bangs sticking to my eyelashes and blurring my vision. And there was Chase, a giant umbrella hanging over his shoulder and my rucksack around his shoulders. Never in my life did I ever think I would be excited to see that boy, but man was I glad he was there.

"Thank God," I said quickly. "I've been stuck here forever."

His amethyst eyes traveled down to my foot and he scrunched his brow. "You seriously are stuck in that?" he asked.

"Yes. Now can you help me? Or get someone that can?"

Chase glared at me, handing me the umbrella and walking over to where the mud had me. After examining my leg for way too long (in my opinion) he walked back over behind me and wrapped his arms around my upper body. In spite of myself, my cheeks reddened. He held me up straight tightened his grip on me.

"Okay ready?" he asked. I could feel his breath tickle my ear, and to my surprise I could even speak. So instead I just nodded. He pulled and I squeaked in pain, and after a few seconds my foot popped out of the mud, causing Chase to stumbled backward and pull me back with him. At first I was frozen, hoping that I hadn't gotten stuck again, but when I opened my eyes Chase said, "Um, can you get off of me?"

I blushed again, rolling off of his legs and onto the muddy path underneath. "I'm sorry," I mumbled. But he didn't answer, he just stood up, trying his best to brush off his pants, and I moved my ankle, taking in a deep breath as my whole leg seized with pain.

"Does it hurt?" Chase asked.

When I looked up he was staring down at me with one hand extended to help me up. I was reluctant to take it, because even though he did get me un-stuck he was still a dick, but I took it anyway. "Yeah," I said as he eased me up slowly. "I mean it doesn't feel broken, but it hurts like a bitch."

It was still pouring, and my cheeks were red and raw from the wind, and I wanted desperately to get out of that storm. Chase's eyes wandered behind me, like he was in some sort of deep thought, and before I could ask for my rucksack he looked down at my left ankle that was still lifted off the ground and slipped his arm around my back. "Well, come on then. My house is closer than yours."

I stood alone in the middle of Chase's bathroom with nothing but my bra and underwear on, staring at a pile of dry clothes he had given me. It was cold, and I was freezing, and it still took me a good ten minutes to start getting dressed. Here I was, stuck in the house of the one person on the island that I actually disliked, and I had to wear his clothes. If I had another choice I would choose to stay as far away from Chase as I could, but obviously I had to stay.

Just as Chase had instructed me, I dropped the soaked clothes into the bathtub and left them there. On my way out of the bathroom I stopped in front of the mirror and studied myself. My hair was still wet, and the pieces that framed my face were stuck to my skin, and there were bits of twigs and leaves scattered throughout my hair. I tried to shake them out with my fingers, but for the most part, it was hopeless. There was a small bit of mascara left under my eyes, but the rest of my face was pale and colorless from the storm. My nose had even started to run.

On any other day maybe I would have been upset about my appearance, but I was with Chase after all. The worse I looked the better.

I stepped out into his hallway and was bombarded by the smell of that chicken potpie I had eaten at the Inn a few nights before. Down the hall I could see Chase standing at his counter, and I walked over and sat down at the table. When the seat squeaked he turned his head slightly to acknowledge me, but he didn't say a word. He just turned back to the bowl of mashed potatoes he was finishing and mixed. On the oven, a small potpie was cooling, and I stared at it and waited for him to speak.

"Are you hungry?" He didn't look at me.

"Yeah." I replied.

And that was all he said. For the next hour we sat in silence, eating our dinner with nothing but the sound of forks scraping against ceramic plates. I kept my eyes on my food, taking the occasional glance at Chase's face to try to read him, but I couldn't. His face was stone cold, much like it always was. Part of me wished that I could tell what he was thinking, even though I hated his guts. There was something there though, something intriguing, that made me want to know absolutely everything about him. And I hated that.


	8. Chapter 8

**Hi everyone! Sorry it took me a little longer to update it, I'm back in school now. And since I am, updates will probably be less frequent. For that I am sorry :(**

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Chase's P.O.V

I had found her sitting alone in the mud in the rain. As if my day couldn't get any worse. Earlier, at work, Yolanda had completely freaked out at me for forgetting the nutmeg in a batch of cookies she was delivering to that new girl, and I dropped at least two plates when I had to fill in for Maya as server. I mean, she has one job, why can't she just do it?

When Jake told me that they were closing up early because of the storm I couldn't have been more excited. I did love to cook, but I did not love those people. And more often than not, my love of cooking was trumped by how annoying everyone at the Inn was. So on that specific day, it was like a blessing from the Harvest Goddess that I got to leave when I did. Well, at least until I saw _her._ Then that blessing was debatable.

I just happened to turn to look down the road to the Caramel Falls District, and there she was, sitting on the ground, in the mud, in this jacket that almost made it impossible to see her. At first I thought it was just a trick of the light as it flashed through the sky, but when I squinted and stepped forward I saw her again. She was just sitting there, in what I would consider to be a typhoon. She was so weird.

"What are you doing?"

Molly's head turned quickly to look at me. "Thank God," she said. "I've been stuck here forever."

I looked down at her leg that was awkwardly stretched out in front of her. Her jeans were mangled and ripped, and I could just barely make out a few scrapes on her skin. But at the end of her leg, her foot had disappeared into the thick mud that she was sitting in. "You seriously are stuck in that?" I said, resisting the urge to laugh.

"Yes. Now can you help me? Or get someone that can?" She snapped.

Generally, Molly had been a pretty sweet girl. I mean, there were very few people who weren't nice on this island, but there was something different about Molly. She just had this essence about her, one that made her stick out above all the rest; which is why it surprised me when she spat at me like that. For some strange reason, I wanted to apologize. But I didn't. Instead I just glared and handed her my umbrella.

I walked over to where the mud had her ankle, and started to think of how the hell I was going to get her out. Clearly, pulling on her leg wasn't going to work. She'd probably already tried that. So instead, I stood up, walked behind her, and wrapped my arms around her chest tightly and started to lift her off of the ground.

"Okay ready?" I asked.

After Molly nodded I pulled, and when she winced in pain I started to feel bad, and again I wanted to apologize, but I didn't. That just wasn't like me. A few pulls later molly's foot broke free from the mud's grasp, and the force caused me to tumble backward, Molly soon following.

That feeling of those first few seconds that she was lying on top of me was almost impossible to explain. Despite the fact that she looked like she'd been sitting in the rain for hours, her skin was warm against mine. Her hair was suffocating me, and it smelled a lot like those cherry blossom trees we had around town. My whole body just refused to move, and even though my gut instinct was to just throw her off of me and ask her what they hell she was doing, I just couldn't. When I finally got my voice back, all I said was, "Um, can you get off of me?"

She mumbled something that I couldn't hear, and rolled off onto the path. When I stood up I tried to brush some of the mud off of my clothes, but it was hopeless. They were ruined. I looked down at Molly then. Her clothes were past the point of soaked through, and her face was pale. And while I stood there staring I noticed her face wince with pain. In a way, I kind of felt bad for her.

"Does it hurt?" I asked.

Molly looked up at me, and for the first time I noticed that she had hazel eyes. They were big and bright, even when she looked miserable, and when I noticed I was staring I just scoffed and offered her a hand to help her up. There was a long pause, like she was contemplating whether or not it was safe to touch me, but eventually she wrapped her fingers around my palm and I hoisted her up, trying not to look her in the eyes.

"Yeah," she finally said. "I mean it doesn't feel broken, but it hurts like a bitch."

Over the ocean there was another bolt of lightning, quickly followed by a loud crack of thunder. The rain felt like little shards of glass hitting my face and I was suddenly faced with a decision. I could either let her go home, or I could take her with me. If it was any other day, or if it were any other girl, I would have just turned around and gone home alone. But for some strange reason, I felt bad about leaving her there. Maybe it was for the same reason I felt the need to return her bag to her, or maybe it was the same reason I felt so weird when she fell on me, but whatever it was, it caused me to do something I had never done for anyone in that town before. Invite her into my home. And frankly, it made me mad that I even wanted to.

"Well, come on then," I said roughly. "My house is closer than yours."

Immediately, I mean literally right as I turned the key and let her walk through the door I totally regretted offering to let Molly stay until the storm passed. Here was this strange, new, farm girl that I didn't even know, and she had already seen more of my house than the people that I had known for years. What, was I such a weak person now that I see one poor, pathetic puppy and I just turn into a puddle? No. That wasn't me. So once that damn storm was over Molly would be out of my house and I would go back to barely talking to her and sometimes sharing meaningless glances at each other. Just the way I liked it.

By the time dinner had ended and we were sitting in my living room we had shared maybe two sentences with each other. I had given her back her rucksack, and she was reading a book quietly in the corner with her ankle, wrapped in tape, was propped up against my windowsill. I updated my cooking log and rested on my couch. The storm outside had gotten a little better, but the wind was still shaking the house and the thunder was only slightly quieter.

With Molly in the house, I was suddenly aware of every little thing that I did. I noticed how my foot was constantly tapping when I wrote, or how I hummed really quietly when I as cooking. Anything that was a trivial sound in my everyday life was like ten times louder when she was there. Maybe it was because she was just so silent, she barely even moved and when she did I didn't notice. But her just being there was loud enough for me to want to kick her out. I had to admit though; her silence was, in a way, comforting. She didn't need to talk, and neither did I.

It was late, probably about nine o'clock, when there was a clicking sound and everything went black. It seemed like even the storm went silent, and for a minute I just sat there, until I realized that I wasn't alone.

"You okay?" I asked as a reflex more than actual concern.

"Yeah," she replied.

"I'll go get a candle."

"It's okay, Chase," she said. Her voice had moved from where she had originally been sitting. "I should probably just go to bed anyway."

From across the room, I heard her shuffle over to me, and when her hand grazed my arm I almost let out a shriek.

"Sorry," she mumbled. "But I'll-I'll just sleep on the couch."

I thought about offering my bed, and telling her that I would sleep on the couch, but I didn't even answer her. Instead I just felt my way into my room and collapsed on my bed, still feeling the tingling of her hand against my skin.

The next morning the sun was shining, birds were singing, and it was almost like that storm had never happened. But it did happen, and Molly was still sleeping soundly in my living room. When I remembered that I groaned and rolled over: just another reason not to get out of bed. Finally, though, I did drag myself out of bed and glanced at myself in the mirror. I was still wearing the same clothes from the day before, and my hair was sticking up in every possible direction known to man. I grabbed a few bobby pins from my dresser and did my best to calm it down, but it was always pretty hopeless.

After throwing on some new clothes and brushing my teeth, I walked out into the hallway and past the living room. There, Molly was still curled up into a ball with my brown quilt thrown on top of her. I stood there for a second, in a daze formed by tired eyes and pure bewilderment at how not-ugly she looked considering what she had been through the night before. Her foot was popping out under the quilt, and it looked a little swollen and red. So once I snapped myself out of it I went to the kitchen to grab her some ice.

With a towel filled with ice in hand, I walked into the living room and over to where she was sleeping. While I tried the best I could to place the bag gently on her ankle she still jerked awake. She gasped and her eyes popped open, causing me to jump back.

"Sorry," I said quickly. "It looked swollen."

Molly just propped herself up on her elbows and looked down at her ankle. Her eyebrows were folded with concern, and for a few seconds I was convinced she didn't even know where she was. Once she looked around she let out a sign and held the ice to her leg. "Thanks," she said quietly. She threw her legs over the side the couch and stretched her arms backward. "But I really should get going. I have a lot of work to do, and I'm betting my crops aren't going to be looking so good." Without another word she stood up, and I could tell her ankle hurt her, but Molly didn't seem like the type to complain, so she pulled through the whole walking thing and headed toward the front door.

"Are you sure?" I asked skeptically, wondering to myself why I wasn't jumping at the chance for her to leave.

"I'm sure." She turned around when she reached the front door and looked at me. "But thanks again, for helping me I mean." By the door there was a bag filled with her wet clothes, and when she picked it up I grabbed her coat off of the coat rack. At least I could pretend to be a decent host.

When I took a good look at her jacket though, I realized that it wasn't hers. I held it up and took a good look at it, and I noticed that it was about three sizes to big for her, and I could picture Owen in my head, and for some reason I felt this tiny pang of anger. And then I felt embarrassed that I got mad, and before I could even stop myself I said, "Is this Owen's"

Right away her face burned red, and she lowered her head and grabbed the damp jacket from my hand. "Um, yeah," she said quickly. She stepped over to the door and turned the knob. "Thanks again." And just like that she was gone.

The door shut behind her and I rubbed my arm in that spot where she had brushed up against me the night before, and I wondered why on earth it freaked me out as much as it did. Or why the fact that she had Owen's jacket angered me. She was just the new girl. Nothing more. But even I new that wasn't really true anymore.


	9. Chapter 9

**Wow that was a long time between updates. And I am afraid it will only get worse :( I have less and less time for writing. But I will try my best! Thanks so much guys for the reviews I got. I signed in one day and I had a bunch of new ones and a new favorite and follower. I love you guys for that! :D**

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Owen's P.O.V

By the time night had actually fallen, I had tried to call Molly's house three times. When I had gotten home that afternoon, I was struck with some weird panic that she didn't make it home, but the phone lines were dead, and I couldn't reach her. So the only choice I had was to wait.

"What if she's hurt somewhere?" I asked for the tenth time.

Ramsey let out an agitated sigh from the counter behind me. "Owen, her house is, like, two minutes away. She's fine."

"But she lives alone. We have no way of knowing if she made it or not, and the damn phones aren't working so I can't get through." Ramsey knew all of this, because I had been talking in circles for the past hour, but I rambled on anyway. I was staring out the window, tapping my foot anxiously as another clap of thunder boomed overhead. The lightning lit up the entire district, and like I had done every time it flashed, I looked around quickly to see if there was any sign of life.

"Of course the phones aren't working, Owen. This is the worst storm we've seen in years."

"Exactly! Which means I have to make sure Molly's okay." I threw my hands up and turned to face Ramsey, who was glaring at me now.

"Listen, I don't know why you're suddenly obsessed with this girl, but there is no way in hell you are leaving this house tonight. Got it?" He had his angry face on. Granted, that was just kind of how his face looked all of the time, but I had grown up with that man, and I could tell when he was serious.

"Got it," I grumbled, turning back to the window. But I was lying. Because Ramsey had raised me, and he knew that I wasn't going to stay put when there was even the slightest chance that someone I cared about was hurt. That was why when I he walked into the back room and turned off the light, I didn't even think twice before grabbing the door knob and walking out into that storm.

Ramsey had been right about one thing; it was the worst storm we had had in years. As I trudged past the carpenters, the sky lit up once more and the thunder was loud enough to make me jump. I desperately tried to move forward, but the wind had a way of pushing me back, which made my job ten times harder, and made it take ten times longer to reach Molly's house. The road to her farm was scattered with fallen branches debris that had made their way from the woods. As I moved forward, I tripped over rocks and sticks and tried my best to stay balanced. In the distance, I could see her house.

There were no lights on, and no sign of movement anywhere. I banged on the door, the rain beating my face. I called out her name but there was no answer, no lights flicking on in the house, nothing. "Molly!" I tried. Still, there was no sign of life.

That's when the panic really started to set in.

My body whipped around, shaking and cold, and I called out for her again, trying to see through the heavy blanket of rain. But it was impossible to see anything in that storm. So all I could do was run. I ran down the path to town, the wind pushing against me, but I didn't stop. I had to find her. I just needed to make sure she was okay.

When I got to the fork in the road by the Inn I slipped in a thick mud puddle, and I called out for Molly again. Still, there were no answers. It took me about an hour to check that town. I searched by the beach, by the lighthouse. I knocked on the doors of every building, but nobody had seen her.

"Owen, come in, the storm is way to bad for you to be outside," Dale had said when I walked up to the Town Hall. "I'm sure she's just sleeping. It's late."

"Thanks Dale," I said, taking a step back and turning to leave.

"Owen, come on man," I head Luke say. I think he said something else, but it was muffled by the sound of the thunder. I thought about turning to ask him what he said, but I didn't. Looking back on it, though, I kind of wish I had. But the adrenalin was pumping through my veins, and I couldn't stop looking. Not until I knew she was safe. I ran toward the Maple Lake District, and ahead I could see a faint light pouring out of the windows of Chase's house.

"Molly!" I called again, glancing around the District as a bold of lightning lit up everything around me. "Molly!"

As I was running up to Chase's house I saw her. She was sitting at the table with him, looking up at him with this look on her face. It looked a lot like how I felt when I looked at her. Chase's eyes were focused on his food, but it was just that look, the one that she was giving him that made me want to scream. Suddenly, the sting of the rain didn't seem so bad anymore. The real pain hit me when my heart dropped into my stomach. I stood outside for too long, just watching the two of them eat together, thinking about how stupid I was for fall for someone so quickly.

There were a lot of things I wanted to do in that moment. I wanted to call out for her again. I wanted to bang on the door and beg her to come with me. I wanted to tell her everything I had been feeling since the moment I saw her. Instead, I just turned and walked back toward my house, relishing my throbbing skin from the ice-cold rain. At least it proved I was still alive.

I walked in the door about twenty minutes later, closing the door behind me and avoiding Ramsey's eye.

"Is she safe?" he asked without turning to look at me.

"Yeah," I said, my low voice. "She's safe."

The next morning, I was busier than I had been in a long time; which, considering the situation, was good for me. It was only nine in the morning and I had already run like, five errands for Ramsey. I had skillfully avoided Chase's house that morning, knowing that if I walked by too many times there would be a very high chance that I would run into Molly. So instead, I walked by her farm, hoping, in some sick twisted way, that she would still be with Chase. And for a while, it worked.

"You are one crazy dude," Luke said to me as I handed him the stone he had fetched me to get. Because of the time lost by the storm, Luke, Dale and Bo were forced to work overtime. Luke had called me begging to bring them some material stone, because apparently Hamilton wouldn't even let them leave to get it themselves.

I dropped the bag on the ground in the giant, dimly lit library. All of the antique furniture was pushed against the furthest wall and had giant, white sheets draped over them. I headed back outside to grab the second bag, and Luke soon fell in step behind me.

"I mean I tried to tell you last night, man. But do you ever listen to me? No. You just had to find out for yourself."

"I get it, Luke," I grumbled, heaving the bag of stones over my shoulder. I turned to walk back through the front door, but Luke automatically blocked my path.

"I'm serious man," he said, his face stone cold. "I only did it because I didn't want you to get hurt. I'm no trying to be a dick."

For a second I just looked at him, contemplating whether or not I waned to even open up to him. He was my best friend, after all. Instead, I just pushed past him. "Could've fooled me," I scoffed. "But seriously dude, I'm fine."

"Seriously Owen, I don't think that you should take it to heart. I only saw him walking with her, that doesn't mean anything," Luke continued.

"Yeah with his arm around her," I corrected. "Plus I saw them together at his place. What else could that mean?"

Luke opened his mouth to speak, but shut it quickly.

"Exactly, but I mean I've only known her for a few days, it's not like I'm in love with her or anything." I didn't really thing that was entirely true.

"I know, but just promise me something."

I looked back at Luke, who was standing in the doorway, leaning up against the frame of it with his arms crossed and his eyes staring accusingly into my soul. I threw the last bag down onto the floor and turned to face him square on, wondering if he could see me falter when I looked into his amber eyes. The silence seemed to last an eternity, but eventually he spoke.

"Promise you won't do anything crazy."

I promised.

On the walk back to the shop I stood at the fork in the road that lead to either Molly's farm or the Maple Lake District for about five minutes. I just stood there, staring at the signs and wondering which path I should take to get home, and more importantly to avoid Molly. Eventually I turned right, figuring that if she did sleep over Chase's house—which I was pretty sure she did—she would still be there. Why fate told me to go that way, I don't know. But after a few minutes of walking I really wished I had gone left.

"Owen?" My heart jumped out of my chest and my feet froze, like the soil from underneath had grabbed them and sunk them deep into the earth. Slowly, I turned my head to face her.

She was wearing an old dress shirt and a pair of boys' sweatpants. In her left arm, my jacket was dangling freely, blowing in the breeze that flowed past us. I tried to avoid her gaze, to look at anything else but her disheveled hair and her flushed cheeks. It was almost impossible, though.

"Uh, morning, Molly," I stammered.

"Morning." She smiled up at me like nothing was wrong; which I suppose in her mind nothing was wrong. After a long wave of silence she looked down at her arm and held out my coat. "Oh, right. Do you want this back? The storm is over and everything, so I think I'll be okay."

If it had been any other day I would have just smiled and told her to keep it, but now that I knew that things would be different, I forced a weak smile and hesitated to grab it. Finally, I took it back, feeling the damp fabric beneath my fingers and pulling it out of her grasp.

"Yeah, thanks," I finally said.

After another long silence, she said, "Well, I should go. I have a lot of work to do today." Her eyes were fixed on mine, I could tell, but I didn't return the gaze.

"Yeah, me too," I said, and I turned to walk toward the Maple Lake District, as to avoid walking with her to her house.

As I walked away I could feel her staring me. It seemed funny, because normally that would be me. I was always the one to stare after her as she walked off, or stare at her in general, but now things were different. Now she had Chase. I tried to tell myself that it didn't matter, that there had to be a reason for what Luke and I saw. Chase wasn't her type. He was nasty, bitter and cold. And Molly was warm, friendly and inviting. When I passed Chase's house I told myself that it didn't matter, that he could have her if he wanted. But it was right then, as I pictured the two of them together, that I was faced with the horrible truth that it was too late. I was already in love.


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey guys! Okay so I finally have the next chapter! I hope you like it. PS. I just got More Friends of Mineral Town the mail, and I am already having a heart struggle between Cliff and Gray. GAHHHH. I don't know who to choose! But I do know that once this is finished I might write something about one of them. **

**Also. Owen fans just stick with me through all of the Chase stuff! You will be satisfied eventually I PROMISE. R&R :)**

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Molly's P.O.V

Boys were stupid. I came to that realization as I was picking out dead plants from my field the day after the big storm. That morning, when I was walking home from Chase's house I had run into Owen. He looked different, and he sure as hell acted different. I had only known Owen for a few days, so I couldn't really say I knew him at all, but the small part that I did know was just so genuine and caring. But that morning it was like that guy was totally gone.

It wasn't like I wanted to keep his jacket, but based on the way he had been acting before I was at least expecting him to put up a fight. He didn't though. He just took it and gave me this weird, fake smile before walking off toward the Maple Lake District.

I pulled out another dead plant out of the ground and threw it into the pile I had going next to me. Standing up straight, I cursed under my breath. I barely had enough money to make it before all of my crops got destroyed. Now what was I going to do? I let a loud sigh pass my lips and looked up toward the sky. Maybe I would have to start working part time again; which I really didn't want to do. When I stepped forward I felt the pain in my ankle and fell down to the ground. Right when I was on the verge of tears I stopped, taking in a deep breath and trying to relax myself. And then the weirdest thing popped into my head.

I wished that Owen was there.

I looked around, as if somehow my thoughts were words that passersby could hear. Luckily, no one was around. The thought even shocked me. I mean, he was cool and everything. He was sweet. But I had absolutely no interest in getting involved with anyone, and I barely knew the guy. So to get my mind off of that crazy ridiculous though, I took once good look at my farm and stood up again. Maybe I just needed some tea or something. After putting the one pile of dead crops I had in the woods next to the field, I headed for town.

When I walked into the Inn it was practically empty. Maya was sitting with Cathy in the corner, whispering something and glancing over at me. She muttered a peppy "welcome" before returning to her obviously private conversation. Colleen was sitting behind the front desk in the corner talking with her husband about the new person that was staying with them, some archeologist or something. And Chase and Yolanda were behind the counter preparing for the dinner rush.

"Afternoon, Molly," Yolanda said over her shoulder. "What can I get for you today?"

I took a seat at the counter, swinging my legs over my seat and resting my elbows on the wooden counter. "I'll have a tea please," I replied. And when I spoke Chase turned around, studying me for a second before turning around and continuing with his work.

"I'll have that right up for you," Yolanda said before walking into the back room. After a few minutes of uncomfortable silence, with nothing but the sounds of my fingers tapping against the wood and Maya and Cathy's muffled voices to break it, Chase turned around and faced me.

"How's your ankle?" he asked calmly, placing an empty teacup in front of me.

"Still sore, but I can walk on it and everything. And work has been pretty okay."

Yolanda walked out of the back room and handed Chase a teapot before returning to her work. Chase turned back to me, pouring the tea gently into my cup and pushing over the sugar from the other side of the bar. "Be careful that you don't overwork it though," he said.

That surprised me a little. First of all, he was talking to me, which still didn't really make sense considering he was an ass hole. Second of all, he wasn't being an ass hole. I mean, I was grateful for him helping me after that storm, but I didn't really think it would change things that much. I was expecting him to go right back to communicating through glares and judging sighs. But here we were, sitting at the Inn, having a real life conversation. It was weird.

"Uh, I won't," I finally replied.

Then things got weirder. As he turned around to put the kettle back onto the counter, his eyes locked with mine, and I swear to God I saw the boy smile. It was very slight, so I could barely see it, but when I did I almost spit my tea all over his face. I didn't though. I choked it down. And then the conversation was over, and we didn't speak for the rest of the afternoon. His mind was focused on his cooking and his work, while mine was focused on the weird feeling I had in my stomach. I didn't really want to call them butterflies, because this was Chase, but in the back of my mind I think I knew that they were.

By the time I had finished with my work that day and stumbled into my house, my ankle was swollen and sore once again. I limped over to my kitchen table and collapsed into the chair. In that tiny, one roomed house the kitchen seemed so much farther away than usual. My stomach grumbled, reminding me that I was, in fact, extremely hungry. But the thought of actually walking over and making dinner made me groan. So instead, I just let my head fall onto my arm outstretched across the table. Maybe, if I wished hard enough, the food would make itself.

There was a tap at the door.

When I glanced at the door I froze. It was late, and no one I knew would normally be calling at that hour. So after a minute of staring I finally called out, "It's open."

There was a moment of hesitation before the door crept open. Behind the faded, splintered wood, Chase emerged in the doorway. He glanced around the room with uncertainty before his eyes fell on mine.

"Uh, hey," he said as he straightened up and swung the door open the rest of the way.

"Hey," I replied. I was slightly taken aback by the fact that he was in my house, and as he stood there across the room and we stared at each other I was silent. There were a lot of things I wanted to ask him but for some reason I just couldn't. "Uh, come in," I said finally, pushing myself up on the edge of the table.

"It's okay," he said quickly, taking a step forward. "You don't have to get up." He was staring at my foot that I had propped up on the chair. "Yolanda just wanted me to bring over some extra food that we had after closing today."

I noticed then that he was holding a basket in his hand, similar to the one that I had brought to Dale, Luke and Bo that day. Although it was covered with checkered cloth, I could tell that it was filled with a lot more than scraps. I lowered myself back into my seat and he walked over to me, meeting me at the table and placing the basket down.

"I figured you would be tired after working all day, and I know you said it's fine, but I figured your ankle would still be hurting. He glanced toward my leg again before looking back at me to wait for a response.

"Oh, well yeah I was just about to go make dinner," I lied.

"I'm sure you were," he replied with a smirk. I had always been terrible at lying. "But enjoy. You can thank Yolanda tomorrow if you want, it was her idea." He turned around to head back toward the door, and I pulled the basket toward me and lifted the cloth up. "I'll see you around," he said. He stared straight ahead, not bothering to turn to face me as he waved.

Inside of the basket there were two small potpies, a loaf of bread, a large container filled with corn, carrots and asparagus, and a small dish of lasagna. I looked up, my face flushed and my through searching for something to say. Those were definitely not left over from that night. From what I had heard from Maya one day, Yolanda was careful about how much food she made so nothing went to waste. Why would she make two extra pies by accident?

I shook the thoughts out of my head and turned quickly to see Chase almost completely out the door. "Um, thanks," I said quickly as the door started to shut. "Have a good night."

The metal latch clicked, leaving me alone in a kitchen filled with food that was clearly prepared for me. I wasn't good at lying, but it became very clear to me then that Chase was almost as bad at it as I was. I stared off at the doorway where he had been standing, replaying his movements in my head. He tried to act so casual; everything about Chase was so casual. I wondered if he was purposely being kind to me or if it was something he just did without thinking.

In a lame attempt to pre-occupy my thoughts, I began to unpack the basket. Everything was still warm, even the bread. I felt a smile curl up onto the corner of my lips, and as I sat there in silence, eating my dinner, I thought about how strange it was that Chase always seemed to turn up just when I needed somebody. It was nice to see that since I had been here there had been so many people always willing to help me. And I thought that even though I promised myself I would focus on my farm work, I could maybe let myself figure out a way to thank Chase for everything he'd done.


	11. Chapter 11

**So this chapter came faster than I was expecting :) I've been in a Harvest Moon mood this weekend I guess. Which is good cause it means more chapters! So as you can see, this is starting off kind of slow-ish as far as relationships go. But I think we will see some development in either the next chapter or the one after that. Thanks again for reading guys! **

**PS sorry for any spelling mistakes or simple errors. I'm too lazy to go back and re-read :)**

Chase's P.O.V

"Dammit, Chase, watch what you're doing!" I turned quickly to see Yolanda running at me with a towel flopping through the air. It wasn't until she had successfully put out the small grease fire that had started on the stove that I realized something was burning.

"Shit," I mumbled, picking the pan off of the stove and whipping it over to the sink. A flame flicked up and cut through the skin on my thumb, and I held back another curse as the pan fell into the sink with a _clang_. Naturally, I turned on the cold water, letting it run over my fingers as it tried it's best to soothe my burn.

"What is with you, Chase? One more slip out like that and you're going home for the night." Yolanda stormed back over to the other side of the counter, where she had been preparing the deserts for that night.

"Sorry," I said half-heartedly. I turned back to the ground beef in the pan and tried to salvage it the best that I could.

The truth was I didn't know what was wrong with me. For some reason after Molly left earlier that day I just couldn't keep my mind on the food. For the first time in my life, I wasn't 100% focused on worked. And it sucked. Part of me hated her for that.

It was almost dinner rush, and soon we would be bombarded with practically the entire town. I dreading it because I got really annoyed at most of the people on Waffle Island, but at the same time my chest fluttered a little at the thought of getting to see Molly again. It was all I could think about; that night I had found her in the rain and taken her to stay with me. Ever since that night things had been different. I had been different.

When I first moved to Waffle Island, I had one thing on my mind and that was my cooking. Being able to prepare meals alongside Yolanda was both annoying as hell and a huge honor. She was one of the world's best, and I hadn't traveled thousands of miles across an ocean to live a boring, typical life. I came to cook, and that was all.

Molly seemed to be changing that though. After I came back from studying in other countries, I was content with what my life was. It was disciplined and focused solely on my own aspirations. But after the other night, it seemed to me like my mind was spending more time wandering to what her hair smelled like and that concentrating look she had on her face when she was reading than my work. I had never felt that way before, that giddiness I felt whenever the front door clicked open and I whipped around to see if she was there. It was all so ridiculous.

At about seven o'clock most of the townsfolk were finishing up their meals, and Yolanda was throwing the few leftovers we had into a basket. The bell above the door chimed and I like I had done all night, I glanced over to see who it was. Owen, that giant, cheery blacksmith walked in and nodded as Luke called out his name from the other corner of the room.

"Hello, Owen," Yolanda sang from behind me. "How are you doing this evening? How was your day?"

"Oh you know, tiring and long. You about you?" Owen took a seat at the counter and leaned forward onto his elbows.

"More of the same, dear. More of the same." Yolanda had this thing with Owen where even though she was ancient, she flirted with him like she was twenty again. Owen was always kind back, asking her questions and listening intently as she rambled on about some new recipe she tried, or how horrible her lessons with Maya were going. Owen always through in the occasional remark on the subject, the kind people use to show that they actually are listening and do actually care. I think Yolanda saw that as him flirting back, but in reality that's just who Owen was: a genuinely nice guy.

"I'm guessing you want a rice cocktail," I said coolly, wiping off the leftover crumbs in front of him.

"Yup," he replied.

When I turned around I wondered if I was just hearing things or if there really was some rigidity to his voice. Normally he would have responded with, "You know me to well, man" or "But of course". So that one worded answer made me cringe a little. I brought back his cocktail and slid it down in front of him, waiting for some sort of response. I got nothing though.

I turned around, unaffected by Owen's, new, weird personality, and didn't even bother to notice that he had left the bar to join Luke and Bo in their usual corner table. Instead, I just finished putting the rest of the lasagna in a pan to take home for dinner, and finished cleaning the massive pile of dishes in the sink.

"So I heard poor Molly hurt her foot," Yolanda said to me a while later. The dining room was mostly cleared out, just Luke and Owen left, and Yolanda always took the time to gossip at the end of a dinner shift.

"She fell or something," I replied. For the first time in my life I wished that Maya were there so I wouldn't have to go along with all of the senseless talking. But I would do just about anything to keep Yolanda happy at the end of the day. That way she wouldn't take her anger out on me.

"Poor thing. It must be hard to have to do all of that work by herself with two good feet, let alone a sprained ankle." Yolanda picked up a basket from the cabinets underneath her and through a red-checkered towel into it. "I want you to gather up whatever we have left over and bring it to her tonight," she ordered.

"What? Why me?" I asked quickly.

She eyed me as she took off her apron, as if she was suspicious about my response.

"I mean, I have a lot of work left to do I don't really feel like walking all of the way out to her farm."

"The dishes are almost done, and you can just clean the tables in the morning," she replied. She tossed her apron onto the hook by the doorway and headed for the stairs. "Goodnight, Chase." She said it as if to make a point that the conversation was over.

"Goodnight," I grumbled.

After putting the last of the dishes away I walked over to the basket she had put out, and the small amount of food she placed next to it. She had some crusts of bread, a thing of asparagus and a cold potpie. What was she thinking? This was nowhere near enough food for a decent meal. Without thinking, I sighed and threw the potpie in the oven, grabbed a loaf of bread from the basket of freshly baked stuff above the counter, and started on a second potpie.

It didn't take long for the first one to warm up, and while waiting for the last one to cook I through everything into the basket, along with some corn and carrots, and cleaned up the dining room while I waited for the food to be done. It was eight, and as soon as Luke and Owen were gone I could leave. I swept the floor and tried not to listen to their hushed whispered. My mind was preoccupied anyway, because I had no clue what I was going to say to Molly when I saw her. I was never one for kind gestures that made me go out of my way, so I had no idea how to act.

"Money's on the table, Chase," Luke called out from the front door. "Have a good night." He smiled and waved as he and Owen walked out into the darkness.

"You too," I called back.

As soon as the door clicked shut behind them I dropped the broom against the wall and hurried over to the kitchen. The potpie was done, and as I moved it over to the basket I suddenly realized that time was running out, and I had to think of what I was really going to say to Molly.

By the time I got the Inn closed up and I was walking toward Molly's farm it was about eight thirty. I wondered if she had even eaten, and if I was just going to embarrass myself by bringing her more food. But there was nothing _to_ be embarrassed about. All I did was take orders from Yolanda. It was her idea, not mine.

I repeated that to myself over and over again as I walked up to Molly's door and knocked. "It's open," she called. The wood muffled her voice, and as weird as it felt I turned the knob and pushed the door open just a little bit. After peaking my head inside I saw her sitting at the table, her leg resting on another chair.

"Uh, hey," I said as I opened the door the rest of the way.

"Hey." She looked shocked and confused, and I felt even more embarrassed than I thought I would. I tried to shake it off, waiting awkwardly in the doorway for her to instruct me to do otherwise. "Uh, come in." She started to stand but I stepped forward, as if I wanted to force her back down. Like standing would be the end of the world.

"It's okay," I practically shouted. "You don't have to get up." I kept my eyes focused on her swollen ankle, and wondered how much it was hurting her. "Yolanda jut wanted me to bring over some extra food we had after closing today."

Molly glanced at the basket in my hand as she sat back down. She looked happy. That kind of happy you look when you're completely starving and see food for the first time.

I closed the door behind me and walked over to where she sat, placing the basket in front of her. "I figured you would be tired after working all day, and I know you said it's fine, but I figured your ankle would still be hurting."

"Oh, well yeah I was just about to make dinner."

I knew that wasn't true. "I'm sure you were." I could feel myself smirk at her and tried to stop, but since keeping calm failed I just turned around and headed for the door. "But enjoy. You can thank Yolanda tomorrow if you want, it was her idea." I felt my face get hot when I noticed that while it was Yolanda's idea, I had gone kind of out of my way to make Molly things that Yolanda _didn't_ ask me to make. "I'll see you around." I kept my eyes focused on the field outside of her door as I opened it. I couldn't let her see the pink I could feel on my cheeks.

"Um, thanks." Right as I shut the door I could just barely make out the rest of her sentence. "Have a good night."

I let out a deep breath as if I had been holding it in the entire time I was in there with her. My feet stayed glued to the spot out in front of her door, and I tried not to replay the incredibly awkward scene of what just happened in my head. Finally, I started for my house. Cursing the day that I ever met that girl, and ever let her make me feel so dumb.


	12. Chapter 12

**I have to say guys, this might be my favorite chapter. I loved writing it. So I really hope you guys enjoy reading it :)**

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"Listen, Owen. All I'm saying is that I have known you for the actual meaning of forever. And you have _never_ been one to give up so easily," Luke said.

"I'm not giving up," I snapped. My eyes were focused on Chase behind the counter of the Inn. Luke and I sat quietly in our corner table, and he had not shut up about Molly since Bo left. Some things I listened to, others I didn't. All I could do was glare at Chase, whom I had never had a problem with but suddenly hated.

"Well you're not going to help the situation by trying to shoot lasers at him from your eyes, dude."

I looked back at Luke. He was staring at me and I suddenly realized that I must have looked incredibly pissed. I relaxed my muscles and leaned back in my seat, letting out a sigh and flinging my head backwards. "I don't know, man. What can I do?" I said quietly. "If she likes him then she likes him. There's no changing that."

"There is always a way to change that," he said sternly. "You just have to try to sabotage their relationship, or kill him or something." He spoke so nonchalantly, as if those were completely normal options. Instead of responding I just picked my head up and gave him that what-the-hell-is-wrong-with-you kind of look. "Okay so maybe you shouldn't kill him," Luke corrected. "But you can always just _make_ Molly fall in love with you.

"_Make_ her fall in love with me?"

"Yeah, you know. Buy her flowers. Compliment her all of the time. Give her jewelry."

"Jewelry?" I suddenly remembered the necklace I had asked Mira to make. I sat up quickly, spilling some of my cocktail onto my jeans.

"Yes, jewelry," Luke said as he slouched forward and mockingly rolled his eyes at me. "You know, the shiny stuff that you and your grandpa help _make_ for a living?"

"You're a dick."

"And I'm the best friend you've got so shut your mouth."

I did. Because he was right.

Luke took another sip of his beer and we were quiet for a while. My mind was racing with the thought of giving Molly that necklace. Maybe Luke was right. Maybe I could get her to fall in love with me. People did that in movies all of the time, right? I glanced at Luke to speak, but as I opened my mouth I heard Yolanda say something to Chase from across the room.

"So I heard poor Molly hurt her foot."

My ears perked up, and I punched Luke in the arm in some weird attempt to tell him to listen. He rocked back in his chair a little and spit out some beer.

"What?" he yelled.

"Shhhhh!" I hissed, nodding my head over toward Chase and Yolanda and tinting my ear so I could hear better.

"She fell or something," Chase said casually.

"Poor thing. It must be hard to have to do all of that work by herself with two good feet, let alone a sprained ankle."

I turned back to Luke, who was leaned in close again trying to listen too.

"She got hurt?" Luke whispered. "When?"

"I don't know, she said she hurt her ankle."

"I know that," he spat.

"Okay will you just listen? If she hurt her ankle that must have been what you were seeing that night, right? Maybe he was just helping her walk." I leaned in close and made sure to keep my voice low as Yolanda walked in and up the stairs. Now it was just the three of us left.

"Yeah, I mean that makes sense," Luke replied. "But that doesn't explain why she stayed there."

I raised my eyebrow and him and frowned. "Luke, would you seriously walk someone with a broken ankle all the way back to Molly's farm when your house was closer."

"Okay no. But still."

We were quiet again. I tried to tell myself that it explained everything, but there was just this little piece of me that wasn't totally convinced. Luke could sense it. Luke could always sense what I was feeling, even when I didn't know I was feeling it. That's why he said, "Okay but we still need to be prepared for the worst. If it was just some freak thing then that's great. But if they are together then you need to be ready for that."

"So if they are together, we just break them up, right?" I asked. I eyed Chase as he walked out to sweep the floors by us. When I glanced back at Luke he was smiling brightly.

"We? _We?_ Does this mean I get to help?" His voice rose with excitement and I clasped my hand against his mouth.

"Shut up, man, he'll hear us." I looked back to see Chase undisturbed in his work. "And yes. But only if you promise me that you won't get involved. You can be my personal spy, but if you say one word to her I will actually hit you in the head with my hammer." I uncovered his mouth and waited for his response.

"Deal," he said. "Man I am _so_ excited for this. This town is so boring and all of your love drama makes it so much more interesting." He dropped some money onto the table and finished off his beer. "Now let's go. We have a plan to hatch."

I stood up and followed him over to the door, dropping my money down in the process.

"Money's on the table Chase," Luke yelled with a smile. Chase looked over at us and nodded. "Have a good night."

"You too," he said.

As we walked out into the darkness and made our way to the Maple Lake District, I shoved Luke, knocking him to the side a few feet.

"Ow, what?" he yelled.

"Did you have to be so nice to him?" I grumbled.

"If we're trying to keep this under wraps we need to be cool, man."

"Yeah, whatever."

Luke and I had stayed up later than I wanted to scheming and figuring out exactly what we were going to do if Molly was, in fact, into Chase. After hours of planning and arguing over what to do, we came up with absolutely nothing. So I decided on one thing. I was going to wing it.

The next morning, after I fell out of bed, I slumped over to the mine and started to look for some ores in the lower area. In my pocket, the ruby necklace jingled as I walked. The one concrete part of my free-for-all plan was that I would give Molly the necklace and pray that she liked it. Like always, the mine was cold and dark. The only sounds I could hear were the dripping of water and the shuffling of my feet. Deeper and deeper I walked, until finally I stopped on a good floor and started pounding my hammer against the rocks.

My mining fell into a rhythm, just like it always did. And soon I was lost in a sea of random thoughts that always seemed to get me through the day. I thought about Molly mostly, about how pretty she was and how I loved the way she smelled. She was quiet and mysterious, and I knew that I would forever have an urge to learn more about her. I thought about Chase, and how I had always liked him before I everything happened. Sure, he wasn't the nicest, and he was a lot more reserved than Luke and myself, but he was generally a good guy. So maybe it wasn't the worst thing in the world if he had won Molly's heart.

There was a shifting of rocks behind me, and I turned around quickly to see Molly herself limping down the stairs of the mine. She coughed as she came down, shielding her eyes from the dust that had risen from the few crumbling rocks near her. Her old, rusty hammer was thrown over her shoulder, and I noticed that one of her boots was puffier than the other one.

"Molly," I said too quickly.

She jumped a little, and glanced around the darkness until she spotted me. She looked down at the lantern that hung on an old nail above me and pointed at it.

"Ah, a lantern. That's a good idea." She was smiling, and even though I was expecting this encounter to be awkward like our last, I couldn't help but laugh.

"You didn't even bring a lantern? How the hell did you find your way down here?" I rested my hammer at my feet and wiped the sweat off of my forehead.

"I just have superior mining skills, I guess." She shrugged. "I can find my way around even in the pitch black." I laughed again as she walked over to me, looking down at the rock I was working on. Through the cracks you could see a little bit of a sparkle, probably silver. She crouched down next to it and pointed. "How do you even know if there's anything in there?" she asked.

I squatted too, pointing into the crack and telling her to look closely. "See? There's a little bit of gray sparkle right there? The sparkling means it's something you want." She looked up at me and smiled, and right then every reservation I had about speaking to her just vanished.

"And you can see that from standing? Man, you're good." She stood up again and I watched as she rose above me.

"Eh, I've been doing it all my life. You start to pick up on things after a while." I stood up too, and for a moment we were covered in a thick silence, and I thought that maybe it was the perfect time to give her the necklace. I reached down into my pocket and felt the cool metal against my skin. I looked down at her, my cheeks already flushed, and waited.

Molly took a step back and looked around the mine. She walked up to every little boulder and crystal and examined it with this wondrous twinkle in her eye. And I thought how any guy in the entire world could look at her and not see the prettiest girl in the universe. I thought about it then, how I wasn't the only guy to see it. Chase had seen it too, even if I wasn't completely sure what was going on between the two of them, I knew he could see it. I could just tell somehow. Maybe it was because I knew the feeling. Maybe we were connected somehow.

"This is my first time being down here," Molly finally said. I was gripping the necklace tighter, trying to work up the nerve to pull it out of my pocket. "I'm glad you're here too, maybe you could tell me what the hell I'm supposed to be doing." She was smiling again but not looking at me.

"You've never been mining before?" That broke my concentration.

"Nope. First time. I really need the extra money, and I would love to be able to learn how to do it, if you don't mind giving me a few lessons."

She was looking at me again, and I came to the sudden realization that I spent so much time awing over her beauty that I had no idea who she was. I didn't know her favorite color, or why she was here, I didn't even know what her last name was. So as I stood there, gripping that necklace and watching her stare at me for a response, I felt so damn stupid. Here I was trying to claim some girl that I barely even knew, and take her from a guy that could very well know more about her than I did. That wasn't fair to him. That wasn't fair to her. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't make her fall for me if she had already fallen for someone else. It wouldn't be right. So I just looked at her and let the necklace drop back down into my pocket.

"Yeah, I can give you some lessons," I said. I tried to shake off my deflated ego and smiled at her. "I mean I am the best miner in town."

She laughed at that, and walked back over to where I was standing next to her stuff. "Good because I could _really_ use the help. I'm not even sure I can swing this thing."

I decided then and there, that if I couldn't be with her in the way that I wanted to be, the least I could do was be with her in that moment, in the mine, teaching her how to swing a hammer. Even if it was just as friends, that was good enough for me. Maybe I could get to know her better, the real Molly, and maybe then I could make her fall in love with me. But it wasn't my place to make her feel something she didn't already feel. So instead, I just picked up my hammer, and showed her the proper way to hold it.


	13. Chapter 13

**Hi guys! Sorry it's been so incredibly long since I last updated :( School and work have both been crazy, so I have had like no time. But, since I only have to work one day this weekend, and midterms are over, I will have time to write! (hopefully). I wanna thank everyone for reading and reviewing, because I have been checking out the trafic since I last updated and it's steady. You guys are the best! Much love xoxo**

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Molly's P.O.V

The next morning I made sure to wake up earlier than usual. Watering the crops taking care of Martha took a little bit longer with my injury. It was nothing I couldn't handle though. So when I finally finished with my morning work, I collapsed onto my kitchen chair and thought about how stressed my money situation was. My summer crops would soon wither, and the money I had made from working at Dale's was almost gone, and I was going to need a lot more if I wanted to have enough to buy seeds for the Fall.

Immediately I thought about the mines, and how it might be a good way to make money fast. I'm sure if I tried hard enough I could find tons of ores and gems, and those definitely sold for more than the herbs and mushrooms I had been scavenging for in the forest. I stood up, walking over to my toolbox to grab the hammer Owen had given to be a few days back, and walked out of the house.

When I passed by the forest I heard someone call out to me. I looked to see Luke running toward me, his hand waving above his head and his axe resting against his shoulder.

"Yo, Molly. How are you?" he asked once he got close enough for me to hear him. Behind him I could see the sun starting to rise over the Blacksmith's. It was still so early.

"I'm well, how are you?"

Luke stepped up in front of me and smiled that giant, goofy smile of his. He shifted his weight back and forth onto each foot. "Not bad, tired as hell but whatever. You off to the mine?" He nodded at the hammer I was holding and I looked at it, almost forgetting that it was there.

"Yeah. I'm going to attempt to do some mining today with out killing myself."

Luke laughed. "Well try not to okay?" I nodded. "And hey if you live through it you wanna come swimming with Owen and I this afternoon? Around three?" By then he was starting back toward the forest, moving slowly and waiting for my response. Man that boy was impatient.

"Uh, yeah sure sounds fun," I replied without thinking.

Luke smiled and yelled something I couldn't hear, before turning around and skipping off toward the woods.

By the time I reached the mine and wandered inside I realized that I was so totally not prepared for this adventure. I walked down the stairs, avoiding pit falls and tripping over almost every bolder I came in contact with, and after a while of wandering I heard a faint banging coming from below me. I roamed around until I found the stairs. As I continued, the banging got louder, and eventually, when I finally made it to the next floor, I found where it was coming from. After looking around, I heard Owen call out my name from the corner of the mine. My heart lept, and after a moment of searching I found him standing beneath the light of a lantern overhead.

"Ah, a lantern. That's a good idea," I said. I pointed above him.

He laughed. "You didn't even bring a lantern? How the hell did you find your way down here?" He rested his hammer at his feet and wiped the sweat off of his forehead.

"I just have superior mining skills, I guess." I shrugged. "I can find my way around even in the pitch black." He laughed again as I walked over to her, examining at the rock he was standing next to. Through the cracks you could see a little bit of a sparkle. I crouched down next to it and pointed. "How do you even know if there's anything in there?" I asked.

Owen squatted too, pointing into the crack and telling me to look closely. "See? There's a little bit of gray sparkle right there? The sparkling means it's something you want."

I looked up at him and smiled. "And you can see that from standing? Man, you're good." I stood up again.

"Eh, I've been doing it all my life. You start to pick up on things after a while." He stood up too, and for a moment we were covered in a thick silence. Owen got kind of weird then, I wouldn't be able to tell you what exactly, just that he was different.

I took a step back and looked around the mine, trying to think of something to say to break the silence. "This is my first time being down here," I finally said. "I'm glad you're here too, maybe you could tell me what the hell I'm supposed to be doing."

"You've never been mining before?"

I turned on my heel and looked over at Owen, who was still standing in the exact same spot. "Nope. First time. I really need the extra money, and I would love to be able to learn how to do it, if you don't mind giving me a few lessons."

It was a long time before he spoke again. We just stood there, staring at each other, and even though it wasn't awkward or anything, it was still noticeable. It looked as if he was thinking really hard about something, and for some odd reason I couldn't take my eyes off of him. There was something about how a person looks when he thinks, that just opens up this whole new side of them that you never really saw. And I saw one then, with Owen. While I didn't know much about him I did know this: he was genuinely selfless, and there were a lot of people in that town that were lucky to have him as a friend. As he looked at me, his gray eyes piercing me, I thought that maybe Owen would be the type of person that would take a bullet for anybody. I don't know how I saw it then, I just did.

"Yeah, I can give you some lessons," he said. The moment was gone "I mean I am the best miner in town."

I laughed and walked back over to where he was standing. "Good because I could _really_ use the help. I'm not even sure I can swing this thing."

I had spent all morning in the mine with Owen, trying to figure out how the hell to swing a hammer. It was harder than it looked, surprisingly. And it was even harder with a bad ankle. Now, I wasn't complaining. In fact, I was trying really hard not to let it bother me. The rest that I had been getting really helped, and I barely noticed the sting anymore, but the entire time I was in the mine Owen kept asking if I was okay. Apparently swinging a hammer isn't the smartest thing to do with an injury, but I was persistent none-the-less.

Now, it was about two o'clock. We were walking back toward the Blacksmith's, Owen's bag filled with ores and mine filled with maybe three. It was that awkward time in between Summer and Autumn where the mornings would be freezing and the afternoons would be sweltering. I saw Owen stretch out of the corner of my eye and say something about how it was way too hot out.

"Oh yeah, Luke invited me to go swimming with you guys this afternoon," I said. "If that's okay with you, I mean."

He gave me this sort of look, like for a second he didn't know what the hell I was talking about. But after a second, his face softened and he nodded. "Oh, right. Yeah that sounds like fun." He smiled slightly, walking over toward his front door and placing his hand on the knob. "You want lunch or anything?"

I took a few steps backwards toward my farm and smiled. "No thanks, I have something I need to take care of before we go swimming. So I'll meet you there?"

Owen smiled and opened the door. "Sounds like a plan. See you, Molly."

"See you." And with that, I turned around to head toward home.

The butterflies didn't start to flutter around in my stomach until I turned the corner and saw his house. I clung to the basket of oranges tightly as I neared his door. I tried to go through what I was going to say in my head, but as soon as I walked up to the door and knocked I forgot everything I was going to say.

When Chase opened the door he wrinkled his eyebrows and leaned against the doorway. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

"It's nice to see you too," I joked.

His cheeks blushed and he looked down at his shoes. And I thought about how funny it was to see him blush. I never thought it was possible, let alone that I would witness it. I could tell that he was searching for something to say, something to fix it. For an instant I waited for him to speak, but once I could tell he was at a loss for words I started rambling.

"It's okay," I said quickly. "I mean, I was just joking. Um. Here." I pushed the basket at him and he looked down, confused. "There was an orange tree out back behind my barn. I found it the other day, and I remembered how you mentioned something about making your own marmalade at the Inn once, so I thought that maybe you could use these." I let go and felt my face get hot from embarrassment. His brow was still furrowed, his mouth slightly agape.

"Um, right. Thanks," he said, shifting the basket under his arm.

There was another uncomfortable pause. "It's the least I can do for you after everything you've helped me out with recently."

Chase shrugged. "It's not a big deal." And after another long silence, I shifted my feet and turned to head back home.

"Well, I'll see you later then." Once I turned completely and stuffed my hands into my pockets I heard his voice ring out from behind me.

"Do you wanna come in?"

I turned again, staring at him at studying his face to figure out if he was serious or not. He stood by the door, stepping aside to usher me inside, and after a moment of silence I turned to face him again.

"Uh, sure," I said slowly. I think maybe I saw him smile as he pushed the door open more and allowed me to walk under his arm and into his house. And when I heard the door click shut behind me I because painfully aware of the fact that this was so much more uncomfortable than the night I had stayed there. I could feel him behind me, watching my every move as I made my way into the kitchen and looked around. He placed the basket on the table, and even the slightest sound that it made caused me to jump.

"I was just about to have lunch," Chase said as he walked over to his cabinets. "You hungry?"

There was something different about him. I couldn't say what exactly, but it was a good kind of different. When he turned around he studied my face, waiting for a response.

"Are you sure you don't mind?" I asked.

"Positive," he answered. "I'm making ratatouille." He walked over to the large pot on the stove and pulled the lid off. Next to him, there were a few small spice jars that he picked up and sprinkled above the pot one by one.

"Well if you don't mind," I finally said. "It would be hard to turn down good that smells so damn good."

Chase turned around, and for the first time in my life, I saw him smile. I mean _really_ smile. It was a lot different than I was expecting. I guess in my head I pictured it more as a snarky sarcastic smile, but it was really, truly, genuine. And without even thinking I smiled back.

"Good." Chase reached above his head and opened the cabinet, grabbing two bowls. "Cause I wouldn't be able to eat all of this myself." When he walked over to the table he was still smiling, and as he placed the bowl in front of me he lingered, allowing me to take in everything: his smell, the glittering in his eyes, the way his shirt was rolled up just to his elbow so I could see all of the little hairs on his arms. And I thought to myself that maybe I would give Chase a chance, because that was what my heart was telling me to do.


	14. Chapter 14

**Hey guys! Finally I got the new chapter up! But I'm so sorry it isn't very good. I a so busy with school that I totally forgot where I was going with that chapter. But now that I get a few weeks off of school hopefully I'll have more time to write! I'm upset though because I wrote a really great section of the story (for future chapters) but I left them in a notebook at school. I'm so mad! Oh well, I'll figure it out. Reviews are appreciated! (Keep in mind I didn't read it so if there are any typos I apologize) **

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Owen's P.O.V

"What did you do?" I asked as I pushed the door to Luke's room open.

Luke looked up from his bag and smiled. "I see you've got your swim suit on," he said. "All ready for our swim date?"

"I thought I told you not to get involved."

He rolled his eyes, turning back to his bag and fumbling with his towel. "I'm sorry, man. It just slipped out. I'm just trying to help. Maybe you can have some alone time." He looked back up and winked at me. "I can leave early and-"

"No."

His face fell, and he stood up. We stood staring on opposite sides of the room, my fists clenched at my sides in defeat. "No what?" he spat.

"It's done. I'm not going through with this."

"Swimming?" Luke asked, confused.

"No, not swimming," I said. "Chasing her, our whole plan. I'm not going through with any of it."

"What? Why?"

"Do you know what her last name is?" I asked quickly.

He stared at me with his eyebrows raised, and clearly he _still_ had no idea what I was talking about. "Burke," he said slowly.

"See, I didn't know what," I said. I collapsed down on his bed and stuffed my face into his hands. It was quiet, and after a moment of stillness, I could hear Luke's feet shuffle over to me.

"Dude, calm down. What are you talking about?"

"She came down to the mines today," I said, my voice muffled by my palms. "And I was just about to give her that necklace when she started talking about how she had never mined before. And I realized that I know absolutely nothing about her. So how can I claim that I love her if I don't even know anything about her?"

Luke sat down next to me. "Maybe it's love at first sight? That exists right? People talk about it all of the time."

"That isn't possible," I added.

Again, it was quiet.

"Well, all hope isn't lost, dude. There's still time."

"She was hanging out with Chase today, I think." I slid my hands down to my chin and looked over at him. The shaking in my voice was gone. I wasn't angry anymore. Or sad. Just numb.

"What? She said that?" he asked.

"No. She said she had something she needed to take care of. But she was going to see him."

"How do you know?"

"I honestly have no idea. I just kind of…do."

Luke was the kind of guy that would say anything he could to make me feel better. He had been that way since we were little, but he also knew me almost better than I knew myself. So he knew when enough was enough. He knew when to keep quiet. And he knew when it was okay to talk about it and when it was time to get my mind off of it. That's why, after about five minutes of sitting there in silence, he clapped his hand against my shoulder and asked if I still wanted to go swimming.

"I don't blame you if you don't want to go. I can always say that you got sick or something."

I stood up, shaking my head and picking his bag up off of the floor. "No. It's okay. I'm not going to let it bug me. We can be friends, right?"

Luke stayed on the bed, his hands clasped together, resting between his legs. He was giving me that look, the one where he had so many things to say so me, like he wanted to protest but he knew how I would react so he just held back instead. "Right," he finally said in a very unconvincing tone.

I tossed his bag toward him, and he caught it.

"So what do you say we go have fun swimming with our _friend_ Molly?" I asked.

Luke studied my face, waiting for some queue as to how to react. Eventually, he just smiled, throwing his bag over his shoulder and heading toward the door.

At the caramel river, the water was calm and clear. As soon as Luke and I turned the corner past Molly's farm and could see the waterfall in the distance, he took off running. Very rarely did Luke and I get time off together during the day, so Luke always took it as a triumph when we got to spend the afternoon at the beach or the river. Simple things could make that boy happy, I guess. By the time I reached him his stuff was already scattered around in the dirt, and he had left a trail of clothes behind him as he ran toward the water.

"Please tell me you kept your pants on," I said following the trail with my eyes, afraid of what I might see.

"Stop being such a pervert," he replied. "I wouldn't do that with Molly coming."

"I hope you mean you wouldn't do that ever," I said. But before he could answer he cannonballed into the water, soaking his shirt and shoes that rested on the banks. When he resurfaced he swam toward the edge and smiled up at me.

"I can't be tamed," he said simply.

I just rolled my eyes. "Whatever you say, Luke. Whatever you say."

It was another hour before I saw Molly's figure making her way down the path to us. I was sitting on the bank with my feet in the water, contemplating getting in, while Luke backstroked around in circles with his eyes closed, silently soaking in the sun. She was wearing a yellow dress that flowed in the breeze as it rolled through the hills. I lifted my hands up to my brow to block the sun away from my eyes as I watched her effortlessly glide up to us.

"Hey boys," she called out when she got a little closer.

"Hey Molly," I called back.

"Man it is really nice here, I've never even checked it out before." She dropped her stuff down next to my bag and kicked off her shoes.

"I'm noticing a pattern," I replied.

Molly pulled her dress over her head, revealing a pink bikini. I looked away, immediately regretting coming with the thought that I could just be her friend. But I sucked it up, because that was all that I had.

"What pattern?" she asked, her voice muffled by the fabric covering her face.

"You haven't seen a lot of this place have you?"

"Not as much as I'd like," she admitted. When I noticed her voice was still muffled I turned to see her struggling to get out of her dress. One strap was stuck on the knot tied behind her back, and as she continued to pull it just got more tangled. Without thinking, I laughed and pushed myself off of the ground.

"You need help?" I asked, as I got closer.

She peered over the hem of her dress and smiled that embarrassed kind of smile. "A little," she said.

It wasn't until I had untangled the strap from the back of her suit that I realized how close we were. She pulled the dress over her head, her short, brown hair falling against her shoulders as she shook it out. Then she looked up at me, her cheeks flushed from her struggle, and smiled.

"Thanks," she said meekly.

"No problem."

It was weird, the moment that followed. The rushing sound of the waterfall seemed to fade out, and in the silence it was just the two of us, standing alone in slow motion. I couldn't take my eyes off of her, and I hated myself for that. But as soon as I realized I was staring, I stepped back, clearing my throat and heading back over to where I had been sitting.

Luke was propping himself up at the edge of the water, his arms folded into each other and his chin resting on them. He looked at me, eyebrow cocked, and that judging sort of smile spread across his lips. I just shot him a look, warning him to shut up, and he shook his head and looked over at Molly as she walked up behind me.

"Hey Luke," she said cheerfully.

"Hey Molly. I'm so excited you came!" He pushed himself off of the wall and allowed himself to sink down into the water, only to pop back up again with that stupid smile on his face.

"Well I am too. It's nice to take a break from work for a little bit," she replied. She sat down next to me as I slid into the water, trying as hard as I could to let Luke dominate the conversation while I tried to forget the fact that she was practically half naked.

"How is the farm going?" Luke asked. He swam over next to her and picked up her foot that was wrapped in white tape. "And more importantly, how's your foot?"

She laughed, kicking a bit of water at him and leaning forward. "The farm is decent, as is my foot," she replied. "I'm not looking forward to getting all of my autumn crops planted. It's just a pain."

"Literally," he joked.

"Literally," she repeated.

"Well, you know you got a bunch of people that are more than willing to help you out," Luke said.

Molly looked over at me then, as I tread water a few yards away from her and Luke. "I do," she said with a smile. I tried to smile back, which twisted into this kind of fake-ass smile. And after a moment I saw her inch forward and take a deep breath, plunging into the water and disappearing all together. Luke turned to look at me with those sad eyes of his.

"So what do you think?" he asked quietly.

I just shrugged. "It's going to be harder than I thought," I replied. I let the water slip back up last my nose, knowing that it was going to be so much worse than I anticipated.


	15. Chapter 15

**Alright, so I didn't get as much done over vacation as I was planning to... Oops. But hopefully this writing kick I've been on today will last and I will have more this weekend! thanks to all of my readers I am so glad you take the time to read! :) Feel free to review, favorite, follow, etc. :)**

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Molly's P.O.V

Since that afternoon at Chase's house, I had been spending a lot more time with him. It started out just as coincidence. I would run into him on my way into town, or go to get dinner just as he was getting off of work. And from there we would walk together, usually in silence but sometimes we would talk about anything and everything. There was something about him, about the way that he didn't speak that made being with him so comfortable. It was like we didn't even have to be talking to be enjoying ourselves. His company was enough.

Eventually, though, our meetings became less coincidental and more obviously planned. I started walking through the Maple Lake district on my way into town in hopes of catching him, or he would go on walks past the river to see me. And that's how we ended up on the bridge by my house, staring out at the water.

"Your lips," Chase said.

When I looked up at him he was studying me from a few feet away. He was leaning up against the railing with his legs spread out in front of him. The corners of his mouth were curled up into this barely noticeable smile, one that he unknowingly wore.

"What about my lips?" I asked. I felt my cheeks get hot as he kept his eyes on me.

"You purse them," he said. "When you're thinking."

As a natural reaction I tried to imitate to action, causing Chase to laugh slightly at my expression. I tried to look down at my lips to see if they were visible passed my cheeks. But they weren't.

"Yeah, exactly like that," Chase said sarcastically.

My still pursed lips broke into a smile as I laughed along with him, and I couldn't tell if I was smiling at myself or smiling because it was the first time I had ever heard him laugh. Eventually though, the laughter died down, and that silence hung over us again as I stared down at my dangling feet.

"You seem so comfortable here," he said after a few minutes. "When I came here for the first time, it took me months to get used to the place. And the people. I mean they were all really nice, they always have been, but I'm so used to being on my own that it was kind of annoying how much everybody wanted to be around me all of the time. I know they were just doing it to be friendly and to help, but it just took some getting used to. They're like one huge family. Even though they annoy the hell out of me most of the time."

"Makes sense," I said. "If you're not used to it then it can probably be a lot to take in."

"Is that what your family is like?" I wasn't expecting the question, so when I turned to him and noticed him studying me again and felt my cheeks flush for the second time.

"Kind of," I said. "I mean, I do have a big family. A mom and a dad and three brothers. So yeah, they are kind of a lot like the people here." I felt the urge to ask him about his, even though I knew I shouldn't have, but I did anyway. "What about yours?"

Chase shifted uncomfortably in his seat before clearing his throat. "Well growing up it was just me and my parents, and they were busy a lot so they never really paid much attention to me. So when I was eighteen I headed for this place, and I haven't talked to them since."

I froze, completely unsure of what to say. "I'm sorry" was the best that I could come up with.

Then, he turned to face me, and I noticed how close we were. His light purple eyes flinched with surprise as he mumbled something about how it was okay, and before I could even comprehend what was happening, he leaned forward and pressed his lips against mine. It took me a minute to realize what was even happening, and that I was sitting there kissing Chase, but when I did that fluttering in my stomach came back again.

When he pulled back I got this horrible feeling that he didn't want to kiss me the way I wanted to kiss him, but by the red spread across his cheeks I could tell that wasn't the case.

"I should probably get ready for work," he said quickly as he jumped up onto his feet.

"R-right," I stuttered. "I'll see you later then."

When I looked up he gestured his hand down to help me up, and I smiled. And when I was back on my feet he smiled back before kissing me quickly on the lips and heading off toward his house.

"Bye," he said quietly.

"Bye." And I was thankful that it wasn't all in my head. Everything that I thought Chase and I had was, in fact, real.

"Alright so I have literally been holding this in for way too long, and I have to ask," Luke said as I sat with him in the forest that afternoon. "What is going on with you and Chase?"

He kept his eyes focused on the tree he was hacking away at, but I could see that smirk of his from the other side of the clearing.

"What do you mean?" I asked, leaning my head up against the trunk of the tree I was sitting by.

"Oh come _on_, Molly," he said dramatically. "It's a small town, and there's not much going on. So anyone with eyes could tell that there's something going on between you two."

I hadn't planned on telling anyone what was going on with Chase and I, mainly because I didn't really know if there was anything going on, but after the countless days I had spent with Luke and Owen I suppose I owed him something.

"I don't know," I said finally. "I mean we've been hanging out a lot, and I really like him." Luke kept hacking away at his tree, and I took his silence as his way of telling me to keep talking. "And he kissed me today."

"Ooo, he kissed you," Luke said in a high-pitched voice.

"Oh, shut it," I laughed. I grabbed a small rock that had been resting beside my leg and threw it at his back. "It's not that big of a deal."

Luke dropped hi axe at his feet then and made his way over to me. "Oh come on, Moll," he said. "It is too a big deal." He sat down next to me with a _thud_ and grabbed my water bottle from beside me. "As your self-appointed best friend, I take it upon myself to ensure your safety here on Waffle Island," he began.

"Oh dear lord, please don't start with some speech."

"Molly Burke, I am talking."

In the few months I had been on Waffle Island, there were two people whom I trusted more than anything else. Luke and Owen. I wouldn't be able to tell you why, exactly. With Owen it was simple. He was sweet, genuine, and cared a hell of a lot about his friends. He always seemed to be around when I needed help watering plants, or bringing my animals in, or fixing a fuse. With Luke though, well I wasn't really sure why I trusted him as much as I did. Maybe it was just the way he made me laugh kind of like I was right then. Everything with the two of them was just easy, and I liked that.

"As a guy, I know how guys can be. And as someone who has lived here his whole life, I know how _Chase_ can be."

I rolled my eyes. "He's not as bad as everyone thinks," I said. "He's just not the same, overly outgoing person that you are. It's just harder for people to get to know him."

"Okay one, overly? And two, I know that. He's not a bad guy I'm just saying."

"Just saying what?" We both looked up to see Owen walking toward us with his hands stuffed in his pockets.

"Luke was just telling me that I have to be careful about dating Chase because he's a rude, angry, sex craved maniac," I clarified.

Owen just looked down at Luke with a smirk and raised eyebrow.

"Alright I didn't say about 90% of that," Luke said to him. "I'm just telling her to be careful. Will you tell her she needs to be careful?"

"You need to be careful," Owen mimicked.

"Thank you."

"Even though I don't really think there's anything wrong with Chase."

"What?" Luke cried. "Come on man, you're supposed to agree with me."

Owen just ignored him and sat down in front of me. "So you two are dating now?" Ever since that storm Owen had been weird. He moped sometimes, then was totally fine, then got cold, and then was fine again. I never really knew what he was going to be like until I saw him.

"I guess, kind of," I replied, hugging my knees to my chest.

"Kind of?" he chuckled as he pushed me into Luke. "What does kind of mean? How can you be kind of dating someone?"

"Well it's not like he officially asked me or anything, I don't know."

"But he kissed her today," Luke added, smirking at me.

Owen's face did that thing then, where he was trying to smile but he actually looked like he got punched in the stomach. It only ever lasted for a second though, barely long enough for me to notice. "Oh, so he kissed you?" he said in a singsong voice. "Well that changes things, that's not so innocent."

"We just kissed," I mumbled into my jeans as I buried my face into them, feeling my cheeks get red.

"When a guy kisses a girl it is never innocent, Molly," Luke pointed out. "As a guy I can attest to that. We _always_ have other things on our minds when we go into kiss a girl. Maybe we don't act on them, but we're still thinking about it." He tapped his head twice with his finger and winked at me, and I actually felt like I wanted to die. Sure, they were my best friends here, but they were also guys that I had only known for a little while.

"Oh come on, don't scare her, Luke," Owen said kicking him in the shin. "I'm sure it wasn't like that. I'm sure he was totally _not_ picturing her naked as he was doing it."

I stood up swiftly. "And that is my cue to leave," I said trying to hide the smile and pretend I really was mad. Luke started laughing uncontrollably and Owen let out a chuckle as well.

"No, Molly don't leave," Owen whined as I threw my bag over my shoulder and headed toward the entrance to the forest. I turned from to see him reaching out to me and smiling. And as soon as Luke could control his laughter he lifted his head up and copied Owen as he called out to me.

"Goodbye, boys," I yelled over them, trying not to giggle as I turned to leave. And soon enough, the calling stopped and all I could hear was the sound of their laughter reverberating off of the trees. Maybe they were right, and maybe most guys would think that kind of stuff. But after all of the surprises Chase had thrown my way, I had come to the conclusion that, for better or worse, Chase was not most guys.


	16. Chapter 16

**Hey guys! I'm proud of not taking forever on this update! :) This chapter is kinda ehh for me, but it'll be important eventually. I promise if you find it boring just keep trying it get's better! Reviews please I'd really appreciate them!**

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Chase's P.O.V

I kissed her. I didn't even mean to and I kissed her. It was literally all I could think about the entire afternoon at work, and now that it was moving into the night shift I still couldn't get it all off of my mind. Luckily, Yolanda wasn't there. So I didn't have anybody breathing down my neck and pointing out all of the mistakes I was making. Which was a lot.

I wasn't even sure I really liked Molly like that to be honest. I mean, I wasn't really sure how that was supposed to feel. Ever since that night she stayed at my house things had been different, and I didn't mean for it to happen. But suddenly we just kept running into each other. And when she stopped by to drop off some oranges to thank me I asked her to stay to eat without even thinking about it. It just kind of slipped out. That's how everything seemed to be with her. I didn't think I just acted. And I hated that.

But the truth was, part of me knew that whenever I would accidentally bump into her it was never really an accident. I wanted to. And kissing her wasn't really an accident either. I wanted to do that too.

I hadn't seen her since that afternoon, and since the dinner rush was starting I knew that even if she did stop by I wouldn't be able to talk to her. It bothered me that I did want to talk to her, but for some reason I kind of liked it.

Once everyone started ordering and taking their seats, I noticed Owen walking over from his table with Luke to sit down at the bar.

"What's up, Owen?" I asked, turning the heat down on the stove and swirling my sautéed mushrooms a little before placing them back down and turning to face him.

"Nothing really," he replied in the most unconvincing tone ever. That was one thing about Owen; he was shit at hiding how he was feeling.

"Okay, if you're sure."

Then, he rolled his eyes slightly and gestured for me to come closer. "Alright, we need to talk," he said through gritted teeth.

"Um, okay," I replied, leaning over the counter to hear him better.

"We've gotta stop this fighting," he said.

"I wasn't aware we were fighting."

"Yeah well that's because being rude is such a natural thing for you that you don't really comprehend it when people are being rude back."

"Like now?"

"Like now." He leaned back a little bit and glanced around the room. I tried to follow his gaze, to see if he was looking for anyone in particular, but it looked like he was just checking to see who, generally, was around. "Listen man," he continued. "I don't really have a problem with you."

"Wow, that's the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me."

"Seriously dude." He ran his hands through his hair and let out this really dramatic sigh.

"Okay, Owen, what is wrong with you?" I finally asked.

"Nothing. Look. I know that you and Molly have been seeing each other lately."

"Is that why you hate me?"

"Yes. Wait, what? No. No I don't hate you," he replied. "I just. Molly is really important to me. And Luke. Me and Luke. And I would just hate for you to do something stupid and hurt her."

And that is when it hit me. His red face. His sudden coldness toward me. His jacket that she had at my house that night. Owen liked Molly, and this was his way of nicely threatening me to back off.

"I don't really see how Molly and I being together is any of your concern. Or Luke's," I replied, taking the towel out of my apron to wipe off the bar.

"I know that," he said, clearly flustered. "I'm just saying. Can you just, can you just be careful? With her?"

The look on is face was different then. Kind of sad, defeated maybe. But as soon as the thought of him liking her popped into my head, it was like my hormones were running in overdrive. And suddenly I didn't really care how obvious I was about hurting his feelings. Because Molly was mine, not his. And he would just have to get over that.

"Yeah, yeah," I replied. "I'll be careful."

Out of the corner of my eye I could see him studying me for a second before getting up and joining Luke again at his table. Something about him made me mad. Who the hell did he think he was, coming over and telling me what to do with my relationship? It was my relationship after all, and had absolutely nothing to do with him. But one thing was for sure: I knew how I felt about Molly now, and absolutely nothing was going to get in the way of me and her.

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The next morning, I woke up in a better mood than I normally was. And the first thing I thought about was her, Molly, and how today would be the day that I officially asked her to be my girlfriend. I jumped out of bed and got dressed as quickly as I could, forgetting to eat breakfast and heading straight out the door.

It wasn't too early, about nine o'clock, so the town was as busy as it ever was as I walked down the path from the Maple Lake District to Molly's house. I passed Luke, who just said good morning and eyed me suspiciously as I walked by. I ignored him though, because there was only one thing on my mind.

When I got to Molly's house I knocked on her door twice, probably louder and more excited than I was willing to admit. I heard her bustling around inside for a second before the door clicked open and she appeared behind the door.

"Oh, hey Chase," she said, smoothing her hair down. "What's up?"

"Let's go on a date," I said bluntly.

"What?"

"A date. Let's go on one. I don't really know how else to word that."

"Right. Yeah sorry I heard you I was just…surprised I guess," she said. We stood there for a second just staring at each other before she looked around and said, "Wait, like now?"

"Yeah, like now," I replied.

At first, she hesitated, hovering in the doorway before stepping toward me and smiling, closing the door behind her. "Alright," she said finally. "It's a date."

"It's a date," I repeated.

For the entire walk to Brownie Ranch I could feel it, that electricity that before had gone unnoticed whenever I was around her. I always knew that there was something off when I was with her, and now that I could see it all for what it really was, it didn't make me angry anymore. In fact, as Molly stepped in synch with me, I could feel myself smile. Actually and genuinely smile.

"So, what is this date going to entail?" Molly finally asked as we made our way passed the mines.

"I'm not really sure," I admitted. "To be honest I didn't really think much about it. I just kind of woke up and decided it was a good day for a date." Beside me, I could tell she was smiling. Even without looking down at her. So I took the chance and reached out for her hand, lacing my fingers with hers. And from then on we were silent, all the way passed Soufflé Farm and the ranch, until we hit the end of the land passed the barn where the ground just dropped into the ocean.

"I've never been this far passed the farm before," Molly said.

It was windy, and while she stared out at the vast blue spread out in front of us I took the opportunity to look down at her. Her hair was all over the place. The wind whipped it around, making it almost impossible to see the skin of her cheeks. Without luck, she struggled to push it away from her eyes. But up there on that cliff the winds were far too strong, and after a few minutes she just huffed in defeat.

I laughed then. I couldn't help it. Something about her was just so damn cute. And even though I had come to some crazy conclusion that I did, in fact, like her, it still made me mad that I thought she was cute.

"What are you laughing at?" she asked, ramming her shoulder into my arm and causing me to teeter slightly. "Your hair doesn't look much better."

"Yes, but my hair is not taking over my entire face," I replied.

"Touché."

Beside us, there was a small gravel patch with a bench, and without thinking, I glanced down at her hand and grabbed it, leading her over to sit. For a while we just stared out into the distance, that comfortable silence sneaking over us again. Every so often I would glance down at her, only to realize I was staring and would quickly turn away.

"So I'm curious," she asked after a while. "What made you ask me on a real date?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but she just kept talking.

"Cause I mean, whatever this is was just kind of, very undefined and I was really confused as to what exactly we were doing. And then when you kissed me that didn't really help much either." She looked at me then, and I felt myself blush.

"Well," I began. My voice cracked, and I cursed at myself in my head. "I was confused too. But I'm not anymore."

Then, she looked up at me, those hazel eyes of her sparkling. And I decided that now would be the perfect time to pull some of that romantic crap that you see in movies. The stuff that girls go gaga over. So instead of saying anything else I ran my fingers along her jaw and lifted her chin with my index finger. When I brushed my lips up against hers I thought about how incredibly smooth I was being, and that if I were a girl I would totally fall in love with me.

Molly's lips were so soft, and she tasted kind of like lemon. And as her hand found my neck, I figured that I must have been the luckiest guy in the world to be able to make her fall for me the way she clearly was. And for some reason or another, I thought about how satisfied I was that she was with me and not Owen.


	17. Chapter 17

**Alright new chapter is ready for your reading pleasure. Please review I'd love to know how you think it's going! And thanks for the follows, reviews and favorites guys :)**

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Owen's P.O.V

He kissed her. That son of a bitch kissed her. And now, he was just standing there behind the counter, making food and talking to people as if it wasn't even that big of a deal. As if he hadn't just kissed the most beautiful girl that had ever stepped foot on this entire earth. What the hell was wrong with him?

"I think I'm going to start keeping a tally," Luke said, breaking me from my thoughts.

When I looked up at him he was staring at me. His elbow was resting on the table, and he held his clearly tired face up with his hand. The other hand was fiddling around with a toothpick as he picked his dinner out of his teeth. He had that look sprawled across his face, like he had been looking at me for far too long.

"A tally of what?" I asked.

"How many times a day you plot that kid's murder in your head," he answered nonchalantly. He pushed his upper body up off of the table and stretched. "I'm at eight so far."

"Very funny," I replied.

"Owen, you said that you weren't gonna let it get to you. That you were going to let Molly do what she wanted."

"Well that clearly isn't working, is it?"

"Clearly."

I could feel my grip tighten around my glass. "But just look at him, man. Swirling that stupid little pan of his. Rubbing it in my face that he got the girl and I have to be left here to rot."

"He's making food, Owen," Luke replied.

"But it's the _way_ he's making the food." I leaned back in my seat and pushed my beer away from me.

"Well," Luke finally said. "I think I can officially say that you have gone insane, and that I should probably take you to Jin right now to go get that checked out. But, because I'm your best friend, and I'm a great one mind you, I am going to offer you one more piece of advice." He leaned closer to me. "Be the bigger man, I mean figuratively of course because literally you're already the bigger man. Anyway, just go up to him, and tell him that he needs to be careful with her."

"Then he'll know I like her though," I replied.

"Not necessarily. I mean, she's our friend; we want her to be safe. Both of us, not just you." He was quiet as I glared over at Chase one last time. "So just go up to him, and have a non-threatening conversation about how you want to make sure he doesn't hurt her. Because as much as it sucks, Owen, that's all you can do right now."

Sometimes, and by sometimes I mean on extremely _rare_ occasions, Luke had some pretty intelligent ideas. And this was one of those rare instances when he said something completely sensible, and completely right. So as reluctant as I was, I pushed myself up off my chair and started over toward the bar, where Curly McGee was standing over his stupid pan.

He glanced over his shoulder at me quickly before fiddling around with the stove. "What's up, Owen?" he asked.

_Okay_, I thought. _All I have to do is respond in a way that doesn't make it seem like anything is wrong, or that I hate him, or that I am head over heels in love with the girl he is currently seeing._

"Nothing really."

_Nailed it. _

"Okay, if you're sure," he said.

Apparently, I was already majorly sucking at this. So without thinking I just motioned for him to come closer. "Alright, we need to talk," I said.

"Um, okay." Chase leaned in.

"We've gotta stop this fighting," I said.

"I wasn't aware we were fighting," he replied.

"Yeah well that's because being rude is such a natural thing for you that you don't really comprehend it when people are being rude back."

"Like now?"

"Like now."

Wow, what a dick.

I took a second to look around, see if anyone was listening in. The last thing I needed was word to get to Molly that I was practically threatening her boyfriend. "Listen man," I continued. "I don't really have a problem with you."

"Wow, that's the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me."

Literally such a dick.

"Seriously dude." I ran my hand through my hair and sighed.

"Okay, Owen, what is wrong with you?" he asked in that stupid, condescending tone.

"Nothing. Look. I know that you and Molly have been seeing each other lately."

"Is that why you hate me?"

"Yes. Wait, what? No. No I don't hate you," I replied. "I just. Molly is really important to me. And Luke. Me and Luke. And I would just hate for you to do something stupid and hurt her."

He looked at me for a second, with this weird expression on his face, and for a moment I thought that we were about to break out into a brawl, and I started to plan what my course of action would be.

"I don't really see how Molly and I being together is any of your concern. Or Luke's," he finally said.

Not exactly what I was expecting…

"I know that," I said. "I'm just saying. Can you just, can you just be careful? With her?"

"Yeah, yeah," I replied. "I'll be careful."

Chase did not sound at all convincing, so that's why when he turned around and I stood up, I watched him for a good few seconds, completely hurt, before turning back to my table where Luke was waiting patiently.

"How'd it go?" he asked.

I grabbed my jacket off of my chair and practically slammed my money down on the table. "If that ass hole hurts her I swear to god he will regret it," I said, before storming out of the Inn.

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It had been only twelve hours since that talk with Chase at the Inn, and I was still fuming. It was still pretty early in the morning, around ten o'clock, and I had spent the past two hours hammering away at a pile of rocks my grandpa wanted me to work on. On any other day I would have been thankful for some work outside in the open, but today I just wanted to spend the rest of my life in that dark, damp cave.

Each time I swung my hammer down I would let out a grunt, like I was allowing all of the anger out with that one swing. It wasn't until Luke came running around the corner that I was broken from that zone I had been in.

"Owen! Owen!" he called out. My hammer stopped mid swing, and I let it rest on my shoulder as he ran toward me.

"What's up?" I asked blankly.

He slowed down into a walk once he was a few yards away from me, panting for breath. "Chase…and…Molly…" he said between breaths. "Are going…to…the tree…"

My hammer dropped behind me, colliding with the ground with a loud, clanking sound. "They're _what?"_ I spat. I took a step closer to him.

Luke took one deep breath and stood up straight before speaking again. "I saw him this morning on his way to Molly's house, and I said good morning and he totally ignored me that dick. I mean I took the time out of my day to say good morning to you and you're not even going to say anything back it's just rude."

"Luke," I said.

"Oh, right. So I got suspicious and I kept walking and dong my chores and stuff, and after I dropped off some stuff at Toby's which was like five minutes ago I was headed up to Soufflé Farm and I saw them walking together. They walked right by you man. And so I panicked and jumped behind a bush which I am still not entirely sure why I did that but I did and so I watched them walk by and they were talking about going on this date. And then…well then I leaned into a stick and it hurt like a bitch so I got kind of distracted and didn't really hear what he said after that…but then I saw them walking off toward Brownie Ranch and you _know_ what's at Brownie Ranch. What did you _say_ to him last night?"

By the end of his story he was gripping my shirt and practically screaming in my face. And it took me a minute to process everything he had said, and try to string it together to be one, coherent, thought. The island had a lot of traditions, one of them being Alan's tree. If you wanted to plan everything perfectly, when you wanted to tell a girl you loved her you would take her on a date to Alan's tree to tell her. It was pointless and stupid, and Chase didn't seem like one for tradition, but that didn't stop me from taking off running toward the farm to see for myself anyway.

"Oh no, please not more running," I heard Luke say before I was out of earshot. I could hear his footsteps behind me as I sprinted passed Soufflé Farm and over to the entrance of the ranch. Once I got to the barn I stopped short, jumping back behind the wooden frame and peering out to see them. It wasn't too long until Luke ran up behind me, panting like crazy.

They were only tiny specs from where I was standing, but I could still see them; cuddled up together on a bench overlooking the water. How disgustingly romantic. They were nowhere near the tree, I kept trying to tell myself that. But for some reason that white, hot, anger that had built up in my gut just wasn't subsiding.

"Do you see them?" Luke asked. "Are they there?"

The only answer I could think to come back with didn't answer his question at all. Instead, I pounded my fist up against the barn door and yelled, "Dammit!"

Luke jumped back a little bit, trying s hard as he could to make it look like I hadn't startled him. "What?" he asked. "What's happening?"

"Nothing's happening," I replied. "I just, I can't do this anymore." The silence that fell over us was thick an awkward, that kind that always seems to creep up on you when things start to get serious. "It's like she's breaking my heart, Luke," I said. "But she doesn't even know it." That was the part that hurt the most I think, not that Chase got the girl and I was stuck here alone. But that if she knew what she was doing to me, should have been so upset, so guilt ridden. And thinking of her like that was the saddest part of the whole thing.

"I can't do this to myself anymore," I continued. "I can't just sit here and watch her be happy with some other guy."

"Then don't." Luke's voice was more serious than I had ever heard it before. While he was always someone I could go to, with anything, there was something about the way he spoke that was just different than any other heart-to-heart we'd had. "We always knew this was a possibility, man," he said. "And if you can't bear to be around it when it happens, there really is only one option."

He was right. As much as it absolutely killed me to admit it, he was completely, one hundred percent right. So when I looked up at him, and he looked back at me, we just stared at each other for a second of mutual agreement, and I pushed myself off of the barn wall and started back toward the mine, and Luke followed right behind me. And I thought about how different things were going to be now, even though there really was no other answer.

The only thing I could do was avoid Molly, and hope for the best.


	18. Chapter 18

**Hit 3,000 views! Thank you guys so much!**

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Molly's P.O.V

To say I was surprised when Chase came knocking on my door that morning to ask me on an actual date would be the understatement of the century. The thing about Chase was he was so subtle about everything he did, especially things involving feelings and the status of our relationship. But for some unknown reason, that day he was just as blunt about how he felt about us as he was about everything else. He asked me out, point blank, and after our date, and the most amazing kiss I had ever received by any guy, he walked me back to my house and told me that he was lucky to have a girlfriend as great as me.

Girlfriend. He used the actual word girlfriend.

If you had told me on that first day I met Chase that I would have fallen so giddy in love with him I probably would have just laughed in your face, but there was something about that boy that made me turn into this huge ball of romantic mush every time I thought about him. And I was happy. For the first time in a really long time, and there was honestly nothing better than that.

Since that day, I had been ridiculously busy with the farm. My new crops were starting to sprout up, some even were producing something, and I had had just about enough of the whole farming thing for the day when I saw Luke walking by, axe in hand. I stood up straighter and flung my hand up over my head before calling out to him. He glanced around momentarily before finding me in the giant forest of corn.

"Hey Mol," he said brightly. When I finally made my way over to me he engulfed me in one of his hugs.

"Hey Luke," I said. "Where the hell have you been? I feel like I haven't seen you and Owen in weeks."

He kind of smiled awkwardly before replying. "Oh you know, pops has got me busy with work. I've barely seen Owen myself."

"You think he'd come around to at least say hi," I joked.

"Yeah, well, I'm sure he's crazy busy with work too. Ramsey gets like that sometimes, makes him work non-stop for like, weeks straight. I'm sure he'll be around sooner or later."

I studying him for a second, watching as his eyebrows furrowed and that smile stayed plastered on his face. Something was up with him for sure.

"So anyway," he continued. "How's the farm life treating you? I see your crops are finally growing."

I laughed. "Finally being the key word," I said. "It's been a bitch but I think there might be a slight chance I'm actually starting to enjoy it."

"You? No way. That's impossible," he joked.

"I know right? You might need to take me to Jin, I might be coming down with a fever."

Luke reached forward with his free hand and smacked it up against my forehead, causing me to sway backwards a little bit. "Ouch!" he cried, dramatically pulling his hand away from my face. "Girl you are on fire! You better get to bed before you collapse." I laughed at his sarcasm before stepping back toward the fields.

"Hopefully it wears off. I'm not really a fan of liking my job." It was quiet after he laughed slightly, and for a while we were just standing there staring at each other. "Well um, what are you doing tonight?" I continued. "We should go get drinks or something. Owen too. Kathy said they're having some special at the bar tonight and everyone's gonna be there, probably getting wasted."

Luke's face contorted awkwardly before his lips curled into a smile and he said, "Yeah sure, I'll see what Owen's up to tonight. You know-if he can and everything."

"Awesome, I'll meet you guys here at like 9?"

He smiled and started walking backward toward town. "Sounds good, see you then, Mol!"

Luke turned on his heel and I watched for a few minutes before he disappeared around the bend in the road. There was something strange about him then, something that I couldn't exactly place. But I figured it must have just been his workload. So I just turned back to my field and headed in to finish my morning's work. Hopefully my uneasiness about the whole thing would subside after seeing them that night. I was sure it was nothing.

"So you're going to that party tonight then?" Chase ran his fingers over mine, tangling and then untangling them. It was night by then, and we were sitting up against a tree by my farm, staring out at the reflections of the stars dancing across Caramel River.

"Yeah, I ran into Luke today and he said he'd go with me." I leaned back to see his face looking down at me, his eyes moving quickly from our hands to me. "It should be fun."

"You clearly have never been to one of Kathy's parties then," he replied. "They usually end up turning into some dramatic, shit show." I laughed along with him, considering that didn't surprise me in the slightest. It was Kathy we were talking about after all. Chase then threw his head back and sighed, bonking his skull up against the trunk of the tree. "Man, I wish I didn't have to work tonight. There are only so many plates of nachos I can make before I really just start to hate everyone."

"Well put," I said. "You're bright outlook on life is so charming, you know."

"Oh shut it," he joked. "You would be thinking the same way if you had to work there. Especially when everyone's drunk. It's gonna be crazy. I'm just trying to warn you."

Chase shifted his legs beneath my head and ran his hand over my hair.

"Well thank you." I sat up. "But I'm sure I'll be fine. It's getting late though. I should head home. Luke will be there soon." I wiped the dirt off of my pants and watched as Chase stood, grabbing my shoulders and kissing me on the forehead.

"Alright. But at least let me walk you home tonight?"

I just smiled and nodded, before leaning in and brushing my lips quickly against his. "Sounds good to me. I'll see you tonight." And with that, I headed off toward my house.

It was almost exactly nine o'clock when I heard the knocking on my door. "It's open," I called out. I was sitting on my bed zipping up my boots when Luke walked in.

At first he glanced around trying to find me, but his eyes quickly settled on mine. "Good evening, Molly," he said cheerfully, swaggering in with his hands in his pockets. "Wow, you look nice."

I had just stood up when he eyed me up and down, causing me to roll my eyes. "Don't sound so surprised," I joked. "It's hurtful" In all honestly the only thing I did was put on makeup and clean my boots, but hey I guess a little goes a long way.

"Oh come on Mol, you always look beautiful. I'm just saying tonight you look," he paused to fish for the right word. "Radiant." He leaned in closer to my face once I walked up to him, and I smirked.

"Nice save." I noticed then that Owen wasn't with him. I glanced around behind him, then back at him. In a weird way, I felt my heart drop a little when I noticed he wasn't there. "Is Owen coming?"

"He said he'd meet us there," Luke replied, turning toward the door and offering me his arm. "He went down there about an hour ago."

With a shrug, I took his arm and headed out the door. The one thing I knew for sure was that this was going to be an interesting night.

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I realize this chapter sucks, I'm sorry :( It was kind of more of a filler chapter, the next one is better I promise!


	19. Chapter 19

**I hope you guys enjoy the new chapter :) It's a little long, and hopefully not rushed. I was just excited to write it. Haha. **

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Owen's P.O.V

"Oh my God this plan is _killing me." _ I peeked over my pillow to see Luke storming into my room, head thrown back, hands running through his out of control hair. He stalked over to the chair next to my dresser and collapsed into it.

"You're telling me," I replied.

"I mean, this morning I was walking by her farm to get into town and she came running out of the crop field to hug me, and I had to lie about why we weren't around so much. And then she asked if I wanted to hang out tonight and I accidentally said yes."

"You said yes?" I shot up onto my elbows and stared at him, his eyes were wide like a deer caught in headlights.

"I'm sorry I know I promised I'd do this thing with you, it just sort of slipped out," he said. "It was like word vomit, I couldn't control it." He slumped over in his chair, causing me to relax back into my bed.

"It's fine, man, it's not your problem it's mine. No one ever said you had to avoid her."

"I know but you know how bad I am at keeping secrets under pressure," he said. "She's gonna ask where you are or press more into why she hasn't seen us and I'm gonna be like 'Oh it's just because Owen's in love with you and doesn't know how to be around you when you're with Chase because you broke his heart…" he trailed off and took a second to take in everything in front of him. I knew it wouldn't take him too long to realize I was still in my bed, just as I had been when he checked on me the day before. "…and he hasn't gotten out of bed for like, a week." His tone was different now. Less worried and more mocking.

I waited for a while to speak. "I feel like a twelve year old girl."

"You're acting like a twelve year old girl," Luke responded.

"Today, Chloe came in to tell me that lunch was ready, and when I told her I wasn't hungry she laughed at me and told me I was being pathetic."

"The fact that a twelve year old girl told you that might actually make you worse than a twelve year old girl."

"Yeah I know." I rolled over onto my back, staring up at the ceiling and trying to wrap my head around the fact that I hadn't actually done anything in days. "You know when you come back tonight I'm going to bombard you with questions about her, right?"

"That might not be necessary," he replied.

I turned my head quickly to face him. Eyebrow raised. "What do you mean?" I asked slowly.

"I kind of told her I'd ask you to come." He flinched before I even replied, like he knew exactly what my reaction was going to be.

"You did _what_?"

"I know!" he responded, standing up to pace like he always did when he was nervous. "I know. I'm sorry, and you don't have to go. I can make something up. But I blame you for doing this to me man, I'm on edge. I'm on edge about everything and I keep saying things I don't even mean to say and it is all your fault. "

"No, I'll go." My answer even surprised me, so when Luke stopped in his tracks I looked at him with a shocked glare as if he was the one that suggested it.

"You'll go?" he asked, his jaw basically lying on the floor.

"I mean, it's not going to be just us and Molly. I can still avoid her," I tried. To be honest, I was actually glad he messed up this time. It was the perfect opportunity to see her without actually talking to her.

"Owen, it's not going to be easy to ignore her when she thinks she's there to hang out with the two of us," Luke replied.

I pulled myself up and swung my legs over the side of my bed, resting my elbows on my knees as if that amount of physical excursion was more than I could handle. It almost was. Damn, I needed to get out of that bed. "I'll be fine," I said. "I can keep busy with other people, and you can keep Molly busy with your friendly charm."

Luke eyed me suspiciously and smirked. "That is the worst plan you have ever come up with, but at this point I will take anything that gets you out of this room. So why not? I'll see you at the Bar man." And with that, he sauntered out of the room. And almost immediately, I regretted everything I had just said.

By the time nine o'clock came around, I had found myself staring at the clock with my foot tapping out of control. It occurred to me I had spent the last thirty minutes like that, but acknowledging it didn't make me peel my eyes away. Luke said they would be there at around ten past, and the thought of seeing Molly for the first time in weeks freaked me the hell out. _You still have time,_ I thought. _You can just run home and no one will even notice. It's not too late._

"What is up with you tonight, O?" I almost fell out of my seat when I heard Kathy's voice coming from next to me. She was staring at me, eyebrow cocked, smirk sprawled across her pink lips.

"Jesus Christ, Kathy. What is wrong with you? You can't just sneak up on people like that," I said, clutching my heart and loosening the grip on my beer.

"Owen I've been sitting here for a solid two minutes," she replied.

"Well still." I turned back towards the clock.

"Alright come on. I haven't seen you in weeks and the first time you show your face around town you're completely on edge. What happened?"

"Just stress," I tried.

"You don't get stressed."

"How would you know?" Right as I whipped my head around to face Kathy I heard the little bell above the door ring. It was almost inaudible over the sound of everyone yelling over each other, but I had been waiting for it for an hour now, and it cut through every other sound in that room.

When I turned back to the door I saw her. Her chestnut hair flowed over her shoulders, a few stray pieces pinned back by her ear. Her eyes scanned the room, the corners crinkling as she smiled. She was still perfect. As if there was ever a chance I would think otherwise. As soon as her eyes started to travel to me I spun back around to face Kathy, who was staring at me like she was waiting for an answer.

"What?" I asked.

"I said do you want another drink?"

I glanced down at my beer, still half full, and looked back at her with the saddest of smile. "Definitely."

Three hours went by since Molly had walked through those doors, and I had successfully gotten myself so drunk that I didn't actually think about the fact that she was in the same room as me. It was nice, not worrying about it. I was sitting in the corner of the bar with Toby, Calvin and Cain, joking about something; what it was I wasn't 100% sure of. But I laughed along with them anyway. Soon after I felt a hand clap up against my shoulder and turned to see Luke smiling at me, that worried kind of smiling.

"Hey man," he said.

"Hey, how's your _date_ with Molly going?" I kind of whispered.

"Great, how's that beer going?" He slowly gripped the glass and peeled it away from my grasp. That was always his subtle way of telling me I had had enough. He took a sip and sat down on the empty table behind is.

"It's cool man, you can have. You're not nearly as drunk enough as you should be," I said.

Calvin yelled something about buying another for Luke and staggered off toward the bar.

"Where is Molly?" I asked, once I noticed Cain and Toby turn to quietly talk to each other.

"She went to the bathroom," he replied. "So I figured I'd say hi while I had the chance. You look awful."

"I love you too, Luke," I said. "And Molly."

"Shut up, Owen." He slapped me upside the head and looked around to see if anyone had heard. "It was a terrible idea for you to get _this_ drunk at a time like this."

"I'm vulnerable," I said, laughing at my own bad joke and letting my forehead fall onto Luke's knee.

"You're embarrassing is what you are," he replied. I could feel his hand pat my back twice before letting his hand rest there on my back. He was still looking around for her, I could tell. And I just sat there, my head down, my mind spinning from a mix of the alcohol and the situation. Luke was right, this was a bad decision. I should have just stayed home. But my heart was still so focused on winning over Molly that I could differentiate the signals it was sending to my brain.

I was about to tell Luke that I was going to go home when I heard her.

"What is happening over here?" My head shop up, causing the dizziness to spiral out of control for a second. When my vision finally became a little clearer and I saw her standing over the two of us, her arms crossed, her eyebrows raised.

"Molly," Luke practically shouted. "We were just, uh-"

"I was just telling Luke that I was thinking about heading home," I finished quickly. It was a pretty good reaction, considering the amount of alcohol I had consumed.

Her face fell then and she uncrossed her arms. "You can't leave now," she begged. "I haven't seen you all night."

At first, I was adamant about leaving. But I was kidding myself, that girl could convince me to do anything. I kind of hated her for the pang I got in my chest when she looked at me with those sad eyes of hers. So instead of standing up and leaving like I should have, I just dipped my head and sighed.

"Yeah I can stay for a little bit," I said.

Molly's face lit up and she sat down quickly in Calvin's empty seat. "Good," she said. "Because we have weeks of catching up to do."

"Right," I said, faking a smile. "Um, what's been up with you? Anything fun?"

"Well," she began. "I was telling Luke here this morning that I actually am starting to enjoy my job."

"You are not," I said, seriously hating this small talk. "You're such a liar you hate farming."

"I'm serious!" she said with a smile. "Now that I'm not killing everything, it's kind of fun."

Luke and I laughed, and for a split second it felt kind of like nothing was weird between us. But when Calvin came stumbling over to Luke that feeling went away.

"Luke," he slurred. "Hayden is being a dick and cut me off. So he….so he won't let me bring you your drink." It took Calvin a good minute to get out the whole sentence, but when he did Luke just laughed and stood up.

"It's alright buddy, I can grab it." He looked at me apologetically and said, "I'll be right back guys."

The silence was thick, and I wasn't really sure what to say. And as if she had heard my prayers, Molly started the conversation back up again so I wouldn't have to. "So the other day, Chase and I were walking past Toby's place…"

Almost as soon as she mentioned his name I spaced out. It was like some kind of natural reaction to hearing about them being together. And it was then, as she rambled on about the two of them, that I really realized what a horrible idea it was that I had come here. It had been weeks since I had seen her and the separation hadn't helped me at all. I still could feel those damn butterflies in my stomach as her foot accidentally brushed against mine. And my head still swirled (even more so than it already was) when I took in that damn, sweet scent of hers. And I still had that constant urge to just grab her face and kiss her. Nothing could help me. Not avoiding her. Not time. Not the alcohol. I was hopelessly in love with her. And there was nothing I could do about it.

That's why without any warning, I just shot up in my seat, bumping into the tale and knocking over my drink in the process. Molly caught the glass quickly, and just looked at me, shock spread across her face. "Whoa, what…are you okay?"

"I just…sorry I gotta go home."

It was quiet while she stared at me, like she was onto something, and before she responded I just turned around quickly and started toward the door. "Owen, wait."

Outside, the air was brisk. It was like a slap in the face, sobering me up at least a little bit, but not enough. The loud murmuring of the bar finally vanished, and I was greeted by the refreshing silence of midnight. Nothing but muffled voices coming from inside and the crashing of the waves on the beach. It didn't last for long though, because soon enough the door to the bar creaked open and I could hear Molly's voice ring out behind me.

"Owen, hold on. Stop. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I said sharply. I kept moving toward the Maple Lake District, hoping that she would just leave it alone and go back inside. But she was persistent.

"Let me at least help you home," she said. I felt her run up behind me and slide her hand around my waist as I stumbled over my feet; which felt a thousand times heavier for some reason. As her hand brushed against the fabric of my shirt, it was like this jolt of electricity that surged through my entire body. She was so close to me, and while it should have been like a dream come true, it wasn't. Without thinking, I pushed her away.

"No!" I said quickly.

She just stood there, shocked. And as I stared at her I could practically feel all the hurt radiating off of her and absorbing into my skin. And I had caused it. I signed in defeat, letting the guilt wrap itself tightly around my lungs. It was everything I was trying to avoid, upsetting her, and if I hadn't been so stupid to think that going to that damn party was a good idea none of it would have happened.

"I'm sorry," I said, barely loud enough for me to hear. I could feel my heart ripping in two again, as if her being with Chase wasn't enough. As I stood there, my head pounding, my life crumbling, all I wanted to do was wrap my arms around her and take everything back. But I couldn't, because Molly was his, and I was just left here wishing that it could be me instead. And there was so much I wanted to tell her right then, as she stared at me like I had broken _her_ heart. But all I could do was back away slowly and say, "I'm sorry Molly. I just-I just can't."

She didn't protest, or even respond. She just stood there and watched as I turned around to leave, suddenly aware of exactly what had happened: whatever there was between us, a friendship, a connection, whatever; it had to be over. For my own sanity. And now, I was just numb.


End file.
